


New and Improved

by Yamagucci28



Series: Work in Progess [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, Break Up, Cheating, Developing Friendships, Drug Use, Emotional Manipulation, Eventual Happy Ending, Explicit Sexual Content, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Heartache, I refuse to believe that the whole team went to separate universities, M/M, Major Original Character(s), Makeover, Mental Health Issues, Personal Growth, Pining, Seduction, Sexual Assault, Slow Build, Smut, Some Humor, They will be together forever, mild violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-10
Updated: 2018-07-15
Packaged: 2018-11-30 07:36:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 22
Words: 23,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11459016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yamagucci28/pseuds/Yamagucci28
Summary: "I'm not the 'shrimp' or 'chibi' that I used to be", Hinata whispered against the shell of Kageyama's ear. "Ba-ka-ya-ma."Tobio shivered.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Each chapter will be written in 1,000 word snippets.

A blur of orange rushed down the narrow street with long strides and a strong battle cry. His across-the-body- bookbag bounced off his hip and the papers in his hands ruffled violently. When the speed demon heard that his best friend Kageyama Tobio wasn’t coming to school today, he made it his personal mission to take double notes and hand deliver them to Kageyama’s home. As soon as he stepped out of the school gates he took off, dodging students on bikes and playing chicken at the crosswalks. Only a block away from his destination, his battle cry became louder and his speed even faster.

Hinata Shōyō soon came face to face with the familiar abode and slowed down to open the fence that surrounded it. He may not have a bowl of hot soup for a possibly sick Kageyama but these notes should prove to be a bit more useful. After all, what brand of chicken noodle was going to help him study for the entrance exams? An excited hand rapped on a door before he turned the knob and entered the home. “Pardon the intrusion,” the teen called out as he footed off his shoes and locked the door behind him.

“Tobi-chan is upstairs in his room studying,” Kageyama’s mother spoke to Hinata as he bypassed the kitchen, only stopping to bow in respect and greeting. She was quite used to the hyperactive boy coming in and out of her home since he’d became friends and teammates with her son. She smiled to herself and turned to the fridge, taking out more ingredients to prepare a dinner for four instead of three.

Hinata ascended the steps two at a time and swiftly made way to Kageyama’s bedroom. If Kageyama was sick, Hinata hoped that it wasn’t contagious because then they’d both be out for the count. And who was going to take triple notes for them? Surely not mean ass Tsukishima Kei whom, fortunately, was in the class ahead of them. If he was just being lazy and sleeping, Hinata was going to pour a bucket of water over his head. He pressed his ear to the door, looking for snoring sounds but only heard rustling. The ginger hooked two fingers under the ring that served as a handle and pulled on it, sliding the door to the side.

Hinata’s senses were attacked with small grunts, muffled gasps, and two half naked bodies. Textbooks were on the floor along with scattered notebooks and papers, but whom they belonged to were clearly preoccupied. If someone told Hinata that he would walk in on two people having sex, he would’ve clicked onto an adult website just to make the premonition come true. Albeit avoiding pure embarrassment. If they told him it would be Kageyama senselessly driving into someone on a school day, he would’ve stayed home.

Maybe the two didn’t hear him because the act didn’t stop. Kageyama’s face was buried into the crook of Person B’s neck and Person B’s eyes were shut tight. Once Hinata comprehended the situation, as if it wasn’t right in front of him, his body reacted as if Kageyama had just tossed a volleyball to him. He felt that same rush but something about this exhilarating feeling was off. His pulse increased to a speed greater than what was physically possible and his heart rammed against his chest like a wild animal. His fingers and legs began to tremble and if Hinata didn’t get out of that hallway right now then something horrendous was going to happen.

The ginger commanded his body to move through sheer willpower, with his hands finding their way to the surface of the door. It quickly slid closed, making a loud _bang_ as it smacked against the frame. He didn’t stop to see who heard because he was already halfway down the stairs. Kageyama’s mother poked her head out the kitchen to see what all the disturbance was about and raised a brow at the curly mess leaving so soon.

It was an absolute struggle for Hinata to put his shoes on but when he heard Kageyama’s mother yell out, “It’s Hinata”, they were quickly secured on his feet and he was out the door. He didn’t bother to shut the gate, either, as he willed his legs to move faster than they did when he first arrived to the Kageyamas’.

Once he appeared at his own home, he burst through the doors, hurriedly removed his shoes, and raced to the bathroom. His chest strained and stomach heaved when he emptied into the toilet. Brown eyes stung and blurred with salty droplets that ran down his cheeks when he regurgitated once more. “Baby, are you alright?” The sound of his mom’s voice met his ears along with his younger sister’s “Big brother, what’s wrong?”

Hinata grabbed some tissue from the roll to wipe his mouth and flushed it down the toilet. Natsu came to his side and grabbed his arm, helping him to his feet while his mother’s expression grew more worried.  

“Don’t worry, mom. I got this,” the young Hinata shooed their reluctant mom out of the bathroom before quickly going back to her brother’s side. She turned on the tap for him to rinse his mouth and he weakly dipped his head down into the sink.

With Natsu’s small but steadying hand on his back, Hinata was guided to his bedroom then to his bed. Natsu put his pillow over her lap, between her legs and motioned for Hinata to lay his head down on it. Immediately, her tiny fingers smoothed through his tresses and sometimes rubbing circles over his temples. She hummed a melody until her brother’s face smooth out to an even expression. Her tune stopped, which meant that it was time for Hinata to start talking.

“I've made a mistake,” he cleared his throat after hearing how raspy it sounded. "I don't like him."


	2. Chapter 2

_Which one do you like, Hinata?_

Hinata had been asked that question many times throughout his junior high school career. His hormone driven, curious friends would get their hands on an 18+ magazine and would bring it to school. Prepubescent eyes would indulge in the pages, absorbing every aspect of the shameless women who showed more than just bare ankles. Once the boys turned the page to a group picture, they would all point out which ones were their favorite. When it would be Hinata’s turn to pick, he couldn’t choose. Not because they were all just so great that he couldn’t pick between them.

Quite the opposite, in fact.

The autonomy of the female body did nothing to make his cheeks burn with embarrassment or send warm chills to the pit of his stomach. And no matter how many times he hid in the janitor’s closet with his peers to luxuriate in the new editions, did the feelings become familiar. Junior high is supposed to be the epitome of societal acceptance. What happens during those three years stays with you until you graduate from high school. Best to stay in line, follow the rules, and be who you’re supposed to be. Everyone wanted to fit in, be accepted, be _normal_.

Hinata wasn’t sure why he didn’t find the pictures appealing but, he knew that finding them unappealing was _not_ normal. So, he did what any kid who didn’t want to live the rest of their school days in constant torment would do. Smiling softly, he would point to the girl always on the far right without a word. At first, he didn’t make a big deal of it as he continued through his junior high years. Who gets excited from just looking at a picture of a naked girl? The real thing was what really mattered and Hinata was sure, he was positive, that he would react like he was supposed to. Only if the opportunity presented itself.

But he knew himself better than anyone else and Hinata knew he was different. That he was off. The first realization, was when he would outwardly stare at his friend while they ate lunch. Something about his facial feature that the friend would hate, Hinata thought was cute. The way his friend would smile and wave him over to copy his homework, Hinata loved. Maybe it was his imagination, but the way his friend would hold his hand a little longer than necessary when they did their secret handshake. It made Hinata’s heart pulse loudly in his ears.

Those thoughts and feelings were locked into the dungeon that was the recesses of his subconscious. If no one else acted, or felt this way then Hinata would sure as hell make sure he didn’t either.

Once he got to high school, he busied his mind with club sports and schoolwork. Honestly, he was never into crushes or dating to begin with (his friends forced him into it) but, being in a locker room filled with shirtless teens steadily reminded him of his abnormal trait. It never showed on his face, he never acted upon it and still it didn’t do weird things to his body. However, he’d be lying if he said he didn’t like what he saw.

Especially, when it came to Kageyama Tobio. Raven tresses, piercing blue orbs, athletic skill and technique, his blush whenever Hinata praised him.

Ugh, Hinata hated him!

Hated everything about the very being that was stupid, mean Ka-ge-ya-ma.

The taller boy belittled, assaulted, scolded, rivaled, and challenged Hinata whenever he breathed a word. During practice and games, they fought, argued, threw shots whenever they messed up a play, poked diarrhea pressure points, and literally kicked each other. When they were being ganged up on by opponents, they stood up for each other, cleared misconceptions, worked together to achieve the same goal, and had each other’s back. Pushed each other to reach their maximum potential, promised to make each other invincible, and became their team’s freak duo.

Kageyama easily, unknowingly summoned Hinata’s repressed feelings and brought them to the surface. His efforts to burn the feelings, this time, and sweep the ashes under the rug were futile. Watching Kageyama grow from the scrawny first year to the lean cuisine third year only made his feelings for him stronger. Too strong.

Of course, he never told Kageyama for he knew that they could only remain best friends. The only person who Hinata confided in was his 12-year-old sister Natsu. Any advice that she’d given could only come from a 12-year-old, but even if he didn’t heed to her words, he was glad that she listened and understood. Their conversations weren’t just limited to Kageyama and how stupid he was, but to other things that were on Hinata’s mind.

Her tiny digits would massage his scalp and her off-key, yet soothing voice would ease whatever stress he was feeling. She never forgot to remind him that she loved him and was always there for him. How he’d miss her presence when he went off to university.

“What? You do like him,” the confusion was obvious in her tone. “What happened? He didn’t toss to you?”

Hinata’s emotions got the better of him and tears streamed out of the corner of his eyes. He squeezed them shut and gnawed at his lower lip, slightly turning his face to the inside of Natsu’s leg. He inhaled through his nose sharply, trying his best not to alert his mom that he was currently crying. Natsu used the hem of her shirt to wipe away his sorrow.

“No,” he croaked out. “Something much worse.”

“He didn’t tell you about the homework,” she gasped to herself more than him as if that was the most diabolical thing that you could do to a person.

If only that were the case.

There was a few knocks at his door and his mom peered in. Hinata turned the opposite way and Natsu protectively covered his face with her arms.

“Kageyama is at the door with your bike. He said that he’s returning it and would also like to speak with you.”

“Tell that titan that Brother can’t come to the phone right now. Please leave a message after the beep,” Natsu’s stern and robotic voice responded for him.

Hinata’s mom rolled her eyes and roughly closed the door knowing that Natsu was about to scream out a long, obnoxious, “ _Beep_!”


	3. Chapter 3

“How’s the studying going, sweetie? Here's a snack for brain power.” Hinata’s mom placed a container with fresh fruit pieces on top of a pile of textbooks.

Hinata was seated at his desk with his homework and notes in front of him. His head lay flat against the back of his forearm and he held a pencil in his right hand. He’d been “studying” for an hour now but the writing utensil between his fingers had yet to be used. Before his mom closed the door, the corners of his lips twitched into a smile and he nodded in thanks.

The entrance exams were barely a week away and graduation season was soon after that. Hinata had his sights set on Tohoku U, the university that his former and present teammates is and will be attending. During his first and half of his second year, he didn’t do very well academically and had to take supplementary lessons because of it. If he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his senpais then Hinata decided that he would do better and work for his future. Balancing between his sports club and studies hadn’t been easy but his hard work paid off. He was looking at volleyball and merit scholarships from many universities. As long as he did well, or decent, on his exam then he wouldn't lose any of his earnings and be home free.

However, tonight just wasn’t one of those nights where his nose was buried in math equations or English proverbs. His mind was everywhere but, causing his head to throb with a dizzying pain.

The recollection of legs wrapped tightly around thrusting hips was embedded into his memory drive. The clip played on a projector at the forefront of his mind and the attempt to stop it with challenging kanji only made him focus on it more. The top corner of his assignment was dampened with tears that leaked from somber brown eyes.

Everything hurt.

Everything hurt and Hinata couldn’t even talk about it. Yes, his beloved Natsu provided him with a moment of vulnerability but he couldn’t make her counsel to something way beyond her years. Not even his mom could be a listening ear. What would she say if she knew Hinata felt pain from seeing his _male_ best friend with someone else? It wasn’t normal and he didn’t want to see her face when she realized that her son wasn’t normal. The reality of possible abandonment was something the teen couldn’t bear to imagine. It often left him feeling cold despite the warm breeze that came during early spring.

Suddenly, Hinata rose from his seat, grabbed the fruit bowl and chucked it at the wall. Next, he went for his textbooks, grunting as he gave them the same treatment. His notes were soon flying in different ways through his room and the desk chair found itself upside down on his bed. Once Hinata caught his breath, he sunk to his knees and slammed his fist down on the floor.  

“This is your fault,” he muttered bitterly.

Despite the strain that was yanking on his chest, he couldn’t blame his friend. Hinata did this to himself and it frustrated him beyond words knowing that he didn’t do anything to change his feelings. The worm was baited on the hook and he didn’t think twice about latching onto the wire. He was a fool to think that their time together was anything outside the platonic box that was labeled friendship, or teammate. He had his hopes set high and really wanted to believe that Kageyama didn’t look at him like he did everyone else.

As far as Hinata knew, Kageyama wasn’t like him. Every other week, the younger boy was given a love letter or was confessed to by their fellow students. None of them were male and Hinata didn’t expect anything of the sort in the first place. How did he know they were all girls? He’d been present—er, hidden, specifically, behind a tree during each confession. How pitiful.

The volleyball freak rejected each heart spill and it convinced Hinata that Kageyama was saving that place for a certain other volleyball freak. He should have known and prepared himself for the actuality that Kageyama might get with someone besides him. Seeing him earlier may have been overkill, though. Honestly, Hinata felt like he might have deserved it.

A muffled tune then filled the room along with a buzzing sound. The ginger gathered himself before he approached his bed and reached under his pillow. He retracted his arm with a ringing cell phone in hand. His eyes lowered to the contact picture that stared back at him and his bottom lip trembled.

It was taken when he was a first year, after their volleyball team won Nationals. They went out to eat as celebration, proudly sporting the medals that hung from their necks. Through all the cheers and shirtless Senpais, Hinata was able to get a picture of just he and Kageyama. Hinata’s blinding smile took up his whole face while one side of Kageyama’s mouth curved up. One hand was holding his medal and the other was on the raven’s head, pulling Kageyama down to his level. Hinata’s eyes were closed, making it impossible to see that Kageyama’s gaze was fixed on him and not the camera. Kageyama refused to retake the picture.

Hinata didn’t move his finger to swipe the green call button, he instead just let it go to voicemail. Not a few seconds later did his phone chime a different ringtone and several texts from Kageyama began to fill his message inbox.

(1/3) _Hinata. I couldn’t contact you sooner, my mom took my phone while I studied and ate dinner._

(2/3) _I returned your bike and…_

(3/4) _Listen, we need to talk…about what you saw._

(4/5) _I didn’t know you were coming over. I would’ve told you not to but I didn’t have my phone._

(5/5) _It’s really embarrassing that you had to see that and I hope you aren’t upset or anything._

Hinata sat on his bed and watched the messages pop up one after the other, not bothering to respond.


	4. Chapter 4

Hinata must have been a newly recruited boy scout because his stomach was knotting up like a thin rope. He treaded down the school halls with each step being more cautious than the last. It was inevitable that he would cross paths with his partner-in-crime yet, he tried his best to look inconspicuous. He kept his head down as not to show his face while occasionally looking over his shoulder. When he found the homeroom door he carefully slid it open before walking in. Kageyama sat two rows to his right and he sat in the middle seat by the window. He took a glance in that direction but didn’t see Kageyama.

Great! Maybe he wasn’t at school again.

However, when he turned down his row Hinata saw killer intent and a scowl sitting in his seat. The ginger internally yelped and began to retreat but was dragged back by his collar before he could touch the door. Kageyama pushed him down into the chair and Hinata used his bag to shield his face.

“Are you avoiding me?” Kageyama asked, then folded his arms.

Hinata squeezed his eyes closed and shook his head. His grip tightened on the bag as he brought it closer to his face.

“Really? Guess it’s a wonder why you not only came here without me, but didn’t even take our usual route,” Kageyama continued to interrogate. “Let’s not forget how you left my text messages without a response. And don’t say that you didn’t see them because they were marked as ‘read’.”

Hinata still didn’t respond.

“Hinata,” Kageyama warned as he snatched Hinata’s bag.

Hinata cupped a hand above his eyes and directed his gaze to the side. If he made eye contact then he was afraid that he’d start crying. He was a sensitive guy. He’d always been full of overactive emotions ever since he was younger. This whole deal was weighing hard on him and he didn’t know what to do. The only thing he was doing was wallowing in self-pity and crying until his eyes went dry. He felt sick.

Apparently, Kageyama was getting impatient because he dropped Hinata’s bag and went to his own seat. Hinata folded his arms up under it and planted his face in the material.

_Just don’t think about it._

They say that if it is ignored then it’ll eventually go away. Drowning himself in the school environment may have distracted him a little but the pain in his chest never subsided. The turmoil came back as soon as he stepped into the locker room to change for practice. The images flooded his mind as soon as he cut his eyes to a changing Kageyama. And as soon as he caught sight of the tiny red nicks bruising his teammate’s shoulders.

The harsh sound of Hinata’s locker closing made a few of his other mates jump but he paid them no mind. He bolted to the gym before they could see the waterworks that was blurring his vision.

Hinata was the vice-captain of their team and Kageyama was the captain. With their graduation coming up, it was their responsibility to make sure each position was taken by the underclassmen. Luckily for Hinata, they’d already discussed whom would be what and relayed the ranks to their manager, and manager-in-training.

After practice, they were going to have a ceremony, for lack of a better word, to officially place the title on each person. The next week or so of practice was not in preparation of anything, but more to get the underclassmen in the groove of their respective positions. And to allow the third years to make as much of their last days on the team, but that part is left out.

“Hinata! Come here a second, will you?” their manager, Yachi Hitoka smiled at Hinata when he walked through the doors. He pretended as if he was getting dust out of his eye when he wiped them with the heels of his palms. “Wow, you’ve gotten taller than you were last week.”

“You said that last week,” Hinata snorted. “And the week before.”

“Because it’s true. I remember when you were no more than a hair taller than me,” the blond girl giggled.

It was true. Hinata sprouted like a weed after his first year and everyone on the team were secretly terrified that he was going to outgrow them soon. He remembered that a couple of them tried to get him addicted to coffee. Drink a bunch of cans a day to stunt his growth spurts. Ah, what a pity it was because Hinata shot up to be an intimidating six-foot tower. Well, as intimidating as he could be when he was a personified ray of sunshine.

His tallest third years like, Yamaguchi Tadashi and Tsukishima were two and four inches above the six-foot line. Even Kageyama had grown and stood at a six foot and three inches. In the end, he supposed, that he still was the shortest of them all. It was whatever though, because who could complain about that when opponents mistook him for a kangaroo when he jumped?

“Anyways, I wanted to tell you that the orders for the reversed color uniforms were delivered yesterday,” she went into her manager mode. “Even though we didn’t have practice, I stayed after and put the boxes in the club room. I put the each of the boys’ name on a sticky note and attached it to their corresponding number.”

“Sweet,” Hinata nodded in understanding. “Before the next season starts, I want to make sure that everyone’s grades are up to par. Did you give Sensei a copy of everyone’s transcripts?”

“Don’t you know who I am? I carried this team,” Yachi scoffed and put a hand on her chest pretending to be offended. She only grew a bit in height herself but her self-confidence skyrocketed.

“Yes, you took good care of us,” Hinata chuckled before examining the team, who were starting to fill the gym. His eyes unintentionally followed Kageyama’s form as the setter took his position by the net.


	5. Chapter 5

How many spikes and serves did Hinata hit out of bounds? He lost count. How many times did a spike get past his block? Tsukishima knows, he was there to pick up Hinata’s slack. How many times did Kageyama lash out to scold him? He didn’t, but he did tell the underclassmen on the other side when he was going to toss to Hinata.

It was always scarier when Kageyama wasn’t yelling at him. His mood was the calm before the storm and Hinata hated to get caught in the rain. He just wasn’t in the feel for practice today, but if he didn’t come then he’d regret it in the future. It was hard to concentrate and whenever the ball came his way, he waited until the last millisecond to jump for the spike.

Hinata was tired, both mentally and physically at this point and he wanted to go home. Acting like everything was fine, proved to be difficult, and being the clog that stopped the gears of his team was getting irritating.

“Hinata-senpai! One more time,” one of his favorite first years, Haru, encouraged him. “A good jump starts with good footing.”

“That’s right!” A few of the boys from the other side raised their fists in agreement.

Coach blew the whistle from the sidelines and Hinata readied himself behind a second-year wing spiker. Yamaguchi mouthed, “Don’t mind”, to Hinata before running over to the serving line. The ball went over the net and the libero was barely able to save it from hitting the floor. A second-year setter tossed to Haru and the boy made eye contact with Hinata before he jumped.

Whenever Hinata wasn’t doing his best at practice, Haru had his six. Haru gave Hinata signals that told him how he was going to hit the ball, or if he was going to hit it at all. It was only to give his senpai chances to redeem himself and to avoid lectures from Kageyama. If he made eye contact before he jumped, that meant he was decoying. Hinata knew this but his legs didn’t have the motivation to come from behind his spiker and block the ball.

That may not have been the best move because as soon as the ball hit the floor, Kageyama advanced on him. Hinata went into a panic and put his hands up as a shield. Kageyama grabbed the arm of his sleeve and pulled him into the equipment room, loudly closing the door behind them. Hinata went to grab something, anything to use as a weapon in case he wasn’t going to walk out of there alive. Kageyama backed him into a wall yet, to his surprise, he didn’t receive any smacks to the head or feel the heat from a raging temper.

“If you’re mad at me, then fine. Just don’t take it out on the team. How do you expect them to work hard in our absence, if you're half-assing practice?” Kageyama remarked in an oddly calm tone.

Hinata scratched the back of his neck and shrugged one shoulder. He kept his eyes focused on a dusty wall shelf.

“Hinata, look at me,” Kageyama ordered.

Hinata closed his eyes when he thought Kageyama was reaching out to strike him but was shocked when warm fingers cupped his jaw. He was forced to face him and got caught in that sapphire gaze.

“Did I make you that upset?” Kageyama lowered his head down so that they were eye level. Both of his brows were pulled down, giving him a worried look.

What was happening?

“I’m sorry, Hinata,” he apologized. “I don’t know if I offended you, but I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable around me.”

Well, so far things weren’t going as planned because Kageyama was way too close for comfort. Hinata wondered if this is how last night went for Kageyama and his…whatever that person was to him. At first, they were studying but then, Kageyama invaded their personal space before one thing led to another…

“Why won’t you talk to me?” Kageyama’s voice was so much softer now and his face smoothed out.

 _Oh,_ _God_. What was happening?

Hinata could feel a small warmth rising up his neck and his nose stung, making his eyes fill with tears. This was so humiliating, he was _not_ going to cry! He brought his bottom lip between his teeth and gently bit down.

At that moment, brown eyes widen dramatically. Either, it was Hinata’s vision being blocked by a wall of water, or the hysteria that made him think he was seeing things. Perhaps, it was his imagination that made him see Kageyama lower his eyes to watch Hinata’s lips before coming back up to stare at him with this unreadable expression.

 _Ohh, God_! What was happening?!

Hinata slapped Kageyama’s wrist away and covered his mouth with both of his hands. “Um, I’m f-fine, Kageyama”. It was hard to reach for his voice. Plus, not having used it in the last hour made it come out shaky and it was given an echo by his clasped hands.

“Bakayama,” he added just convince the raven that everything was back to normal. The warmth had risen to his cheeks and he was glad that his hands blocked out any visual embarrassment.

Kageyama grunted before standing up straight and walking to the door. “Apologize to coach for interrupting practice. Let’s end early to get this ceremony started.”

“Give me a minute,” Hinata nodded and Kageyama walked out. When the door clicked shut, Hinata’s knees gave out and he slid down the wall. He looked to the ceiling as his fingers rubbed the wetness from under his eyes. He let a hand drop to his chest and he gripped the cotton of his white, practice shirt. He’d been unaware of the rapid thudding of his heart and the nervous sweat that beaded on his forehead.

Kageyama was going to drive Hinata into an early grave because what in the full _fuck_ was that?


	6. Chapter 6

For the rest of the week, things had appeared to be back to normal between the freak duo. Hinata got his act together in practice, walked with Kageyama to school, and ate lunch with him. Though, there was no way in hell that he would go over Kageyama’s home to study again. And no amount of ‘don’t worry’s’ was going to change that.

Hinata really was trying his best not to let his internal conflict affect those around him. In his opinion, it was an even bigger challenge not to serve the ball into the back of Kageyama’s head, or give him the wrong answers on the homework.

On a scale of one to Hinata, the ginger was only half of his usual radiant self. Some of his teammates took notice and he used the stressful ending of the year as an excuse for his actions. It wasn’t exactly a whole lie, however. He was incredibly focused on the upcoming exam and “training” the underclassmen. During those moments, his mind didn’t revolve around the stoic raven who loved to send chops to the top of his head.

When he did think about it, he felt foolish for constantly swimming in his pool of self-pity. What reason was there to hold onto hurt that Kageyama sincerely apologized for?

It happened and Hinata couldn’t go back and change it. That and the apology were the only factors that played into Hinata’s decision in continuing the study sessions. He told Kageyama that they would take place at his house only and in return, Hinata wouldn’t act “weird” around him. Hinata mentally assured the taller boy that he wasn’t acting weird, but putting on a front that said everything was fine. Meanwhile, his mind worked overtime to suppress the ache that sat heavy on his heart.

It was Friday evening and Hinata and Kageyama were studying in his room. Hinata’s alarm clock radio played a mellow tune in the background, while their brains went to work. Kageyama situated the desk while Hinata lied on his stomach on his bed.

“I feel pretty good about leaving the team behind. I’ll miss them but, I think that they’ll make us proud,” Hinata nodded to himself as he underlined a grammatically incorrect sentence.

Kageyama grunted in agreement before asking where to place a variable in one of his math equations. “Are you going to accept your volleyball scholarship?” the raven inquired.

“I’m not sure, yet.”

“You’d better make a decision before the exam next week,” Kageyama rolled his chair back before spinning a 360. “I’m definitely accepting mine.”

The corner of Hinata’s mouth curved up, “In that case, I’ll call Tohoku and tell them never mind.”

“Dumbass,” Kageyama snorted, “If we played on a collegiate level, Tohoku would go to Regionals every year.”

‘ _We_ ’, _huh_? _I wish things could be that way_.

“I want to do more than just volleyball. I mean, I haven’t decided on a major but there’s something out there that should fit me,” Hinata placed his pencil behind his ear and flipped over on his back. “I can be great.”

“You can’t be great and an idiot at the same time,” Kageyama shrugged.

“How about, fuck you?” Hinata rolled his eyes even though Kageyama probably couldn’t see. “Then there is campus life, the dorms, food, and new friends that could sneak me into parties.”

“You? At a party?” Kageyama chuckled as he pushed his bangs atop his head, only for them to fall back in place. “Out of everything that could fit you, that would not be it.”

Hinata sat up and glared at his friend over his shoulder. “And what makes you think you know what fits me? I can go out and have fun.”

“I know you,’ Kageyama turned to face his friend and folded his arms before speaking. “You’re too naïve and innocent. They drink, do God knows what kind of drugs, and lure first years like you away to get in your pants. Girls are going to tell you anything to get you alone. And being the pure hearted kid that you are, you’re going to let them. I wouldn’t want your first time to be with someone who’s going to throw you away after they’re done.”

“Why do you have to be so vulgar?” Hinata’s anger meter rose and he looked down at his lap.

Oh, how Hinata wanted to tell Kageyama how wrong he was. They may be like two peas in a pod on a volleyball court but Kageyama knew nothing about this aspect of Hinata’s life. And if any girls on campus thought they had a chance to get to know him intimately, then both are in for a surprise.

A scenario of him and girl being alone played out in his head. Hinata caught second-hand embarrassment from his imaginary-self confessing to the girl, telling her why he’s not interested. It showed externally on his real face and he was grateful that Kageyama couldn’t see it.

Yes, Hinata can admit that he is a sweetheart but he’s just young, not dumb. Besides, not only was it illegal for his age to take part in drugs and alcohol, but things like that didn’t excite him, anyways. Ok, maybe he was curious about how it might taste but he wasn’t ready to take a whole bottle of sake to the head.

Kageyama didn’t know him that well.

“You don’t know _what_ I’ve been up to lately, Ba-ka-ya-ma!” Hinata said his name in a teasing voice. “I know how to…”

A boisterous laugh came from behind him, making the ginger jump slightly.

“You can’t expect me to believe you’ve had sex when you can’t even say it out loud,” Kageyama balled up a blank sheet of paper and threw it at his friend. “You know how to ‘do it', ha! I can’t even say that with a straight face. And you know that I really don’t have a sense of humor.”

Hinata felt his face burn hotter and wanted so badly to wrap his hands around Kageyama’s neck to make him stop talking. Or breathing. Whichever comes first.


	7. Chapter 7

“You want to know how I know?” Kageyama smiled and starting slowly spinning in the chair.

“Enlighten me,” Hinata spit back before completely facing the rotating setter. “There’s no way that you know for sure.”

“When you walked in on me, I knew.”

He just had to bring that up again, didn’t he? Hinata’s anger transitioned into annoyance. Just when he thought that he’d forget about it, or at least not think about it anymore.

“I figured you were mad either because I became a man before you, or that I didn’t tell you,” Kageyama said with confidence. “You know, because we tell each other everything.”

Hinata vaguely wondered if Kageyama knew when he was being an inconsiderate asshole or not. He told himself that he didn’t care about what Kageyama did from now on because he had no right to the taller boy. But now that it was brought up, he couldn’t help the questions that spilled from his mouth.

“Yeah,” he let out a fake laugh, “I felt some kind of way because you didn’t tell me. Who was that person, anyway?”

Kageyama whispered, “I knew it” to himself before acknowledging the question. “A gentleman never kisses and tells.”

“Spare me the details, I just wanted to know who it was,” Hinata scrunched his face. “What’s spoken between us, always stays between us. Is it a girl that I know?”

 _Or a boy that I know_ …

Hinata wanted to slap himself for that thought. This was not the time!

“You may have seen her face,” Kageyama raised a hand in a guessing gesture. “She came to a lot of our games this year.”

“Does she go to our school?”

“Nope, she’s from the city.”

“Then how do you know her?” Hinata hoped that sounded as nonchalant as it did in his head. His curiosity was going to get his feelings hurt but, he wanted to know what made this girl more special than him.

“After training camp last summer, she stopped me on the way to the restroom,” the raven tapped his chin, “I don’t remember how the conversation went but we ended up exchanging numbers.”

“So, you texted and then finally decided to meet to study?” He hoped the bite in that one went unnoticed as he made air quotes with his fingers.

Kageyama shifted his glance and turned back around to the desk. “That wasn’t our first time.”

First time meeting up or first time…? The ambiguity in his statement made Hinata’s bloodstream go cold until he asked himself, what was he stressing about? Kageyama Tobio had _been_ out of his reach and was sleeping peacefully in the grasps of someone else’s a long time ago. It was baffling.

“Since when were you interested in things like romance and dating?” Hinata probed.

There was a small pause before Kageyama spun back around, eyes cast off to the side. His face sported a crimson red and his muttered answer told Hinata everything he needed to know.

“She told me she wanted to know the real reason why a setter’s hands were so important.”

Ok, that one stung. Hinata chewed more than he could swallow and walked right into it. He brought his hands together and pinched the stretchy skin between his thumb and index finger as hard as he could. He took a deep breath and blinked away tears before they could fully form and fall.

 _Suck it up_.

“Do you like her?” Hinata was sure that came out an octave higher than it needed to. It was a silly thing to ask but he needed to know. To his surprise (and relief), Kageyama quickly shook his head and waved a hand.

“It wasn’t like that, just physical,” the raven went on before meeting Hinata’s eyes. “What? Don’t look at me like that.”

“I’m just concerned is all,” Hinata treaded carefully as he told his lie. “What if she starts to have feelings for you and want more than just…studying? I don’t want to see anyone get hurt.”

“You’re probably right. I should break things off before that happens.” Kageyama tapped his chin once more in contemplation before nodding his head in agreement.

“But, I don’t know,” Hinata feigned indifference as he assumed his previous position in front of his homework. He hoped that this didn’t make him a horrible friend; pretending to care about Kageyama’s emotional state when, in fact, he was trying to get his own back under control. Though, he remembered how repulsive the sight of Kageyama and City Girl made him that day and pushed the doubts aside.

It was better this way to a certain extent. If he didn’t barge in on them he wouldn’t have known and been able to advise against it. It did scare him to think about how long it had been going on. And who knows how long it would’ve kept going if Kageyama didn’t speak up.

Lucky for Hinata, Kageyama took Hinata’s opinions into deep consideration and serious disapproval could make or break the setter. That’s why Hinata wasn’t too surprised at how fast he agreed to cut off City Girl. Of course, Hinata never used that to his advantage, he wasn’t that cruel. He deduced that over the three years, they’ve grown attached in their own, individual ways and both bonds had their downside.

He often thought about what was going to happen to them once they started university. There were many stories on how friendships didn’t always make it and you turn out graduating alone or with a whole new group. But, they’ve always been Kageyama _and_ Hinata, the conjunction was a given. Then again, the two never talked about rooming together once their acceptance letters to Tohoku came in. Would Kageyama even want to hang with a naïve and innocent first year? Now that he’s gotten a taste of things aside from volleyball, and schoolwork? Witnessing his captain’s intimate side was one thing, but losing their bond would make Hinata lose his fucking mind.


	8. Chapter 8

“Does your sister want to kill me?” Kageyama asked with slight tremble in his voice.

Hinata chuckled and turned over to face the setter, whom was lying in a pallet next to his bed. Hinata’s mom invited Kageyama to dinner which led to his staying the night. While they were eating and doing their nightly routine, Natsu looked ready to commit a crime that she wouldn’t regret. Hinata made sure to sit on the same side of the table as her, and that she used the chopsticks with the blunt ends. The small ginger hadn’t forgotten how Kageyama brought her treasured brother to tears and wasn’t too happy about the setter overstaying his welcome.

Hinata tried to keep his laughter to a minimum at the glares he caught Natsu giving Kageyama. His mom was oblivious to what was going on and scolded her son for being silly at the dinner table. Kageyama didn’t know what he had done to cause the behavior and was noticeably uncomfortable and nervous.

At one point, Natsu pulled Hinata to the side and offered to accidentally drop Kageyama’s shoes in the toilet. She had already let it slide, Kageyama’s coming over to study all week, but this was too far and nobody asked for her ‘OK’.

“What makes you ask that?” Hinata propped his head up on his elbow.

Then, Kageyama sat up and got on his knees to crawl over to the bedroom door. He pressed his ear to the panel, paused, then scrambled back to his bedding.

“You’re a weirdo,” Hinata confirmed with a smile.

“I’m being cautious. If she’s listening, I might not make it to breakfast and that’s a risk I don’t want to take,” Kageyama pulled the cover up to his shoulder while facing Hinata. “Hinata-san’s eggs are amazing.”

“As I said,” Hinata rolled his eyes, “But, why would Natsu want to kill you?”

Blue eyes darted towards the door once more before he answered. “Hinata-san always pours me a glass of milk instead of tea when we all eat together. Well as I was sitting down, I noticed that smaller Hinata-san was really focused on the glass with an intense face. When I picked it up to drink, she grinned.”

Hinata’s eyes widened as he thought back to when his mom called them down to eat. After Hinata declined Natsu’s offer, she insisted that she help their mom set the table even though it was his night to help. He should’ve known something was up because she never does his chores for him. Isn’t he supposed to be overprotective over her? Not the other way around.

“Did you drink it?” Hinata snickered. That damn Natsu!

“Of course not,” Kageyama whispered loudly. “I just tilted it and swallowed.”

Note to self, when Kageyama is around, Natsu is to be under adult supervision.

“I’m sure that it was harmless,” Hinata shrugged a shoulder before lying back down. “She plays mind games with people. Probably made you think that something was wrong just to mess with you.”

“Welp,” Kageyama turn over on his back and closed his eyes, “If I don’t wake up in the morning then you know who to go to first.”

“The garbage man?”

“Goodnight, dumbass.”

* * *

 “Can’t keep up, Bateyama?” Hinata called over his shoulder before he slowed his running pace down to a stop. He entwined his fingers and put them behind his head to catch a breath. Kageyama quickly ran up to him, leaning forward on his knees panting heavily. Hinata was dressed in gray sweats and a light, black jacket. Kageyama was wearing shorts with leggings underneath and a gray hoodie with black sleeves.

“You had a head start,” Kageyama defended. “Why did you take off like that?”

For starters, a Kageyama wearing leggings with shorts was always something that Hinata struggled with. It was cute first year but since the setter had filled out, baby fat turned to muscle and that made Hinata want to risk it all. Secondly, they haven’t had a good run together in a while. They ran plenty of times with the team but it was something different whenever it was just them and their rivalry. He was anxious and wanted Kageyama to chase after him…literally and figuratively.

Hinata was feeling nostalgic and hopeful, sue him.

He flashed his friend a smile before jogging in place. He assessed their surroundings and thought of how close they were to certain running paths before something else popped in his head.

“Follow me if you can, Slowyama,” Hinata mused before bolting to the left and turning right at a corner. He heard Kageyama yell in frustration but the taller boy was swift to fall into place next to him. Even though Kageyama didn’t know where they were going, he attempted to get the lead in front of a persistent Hinata.

The morning breeze blew past them as the lights of dawn illuminated the dark blue yonder. Less houses and more agriculture surrounded them until the ginger signaled for them to stop. Dozens of lines of crops fanned out around them and in the distance, sat a greenhouse. Hinata smiled to himself before turning to Kageyama who was eager to get back to it.

“Remember when we played against each other the first and last time?” Hinata requested. “And afterwards you told me that to win, I had to become strong?”

“Eh, vaguely,” Kageyama shrugged and put his hands behind his head.

“I took what you said to heart and worked to become strong. That next morning I came here and ran almost every day through heat, sleek, snow, and rain. This is where it all started for me.” Hinata took in the view again, loving how the early rays poured over the mountains the same way it did when he was younger. “I won’t be back here for a while once we head off to university, so I wanted to run one last time.”

“Hm,” Kageyama looked at Hinata with all the fondness he could muster. “Then let’s go.”


	9. Chapter 9

After their run, the teens staggered back to the Hinata’s to refresh and eat breakfast. They received a text from Yamaguchi proposing that all the third years visit the Shifuku-Ji Zen Temple in Sendai. Then after, they all would sit at a café to relax and talk to one another outside of school and volleyball. Everyone agreed and were to meet up at Sendai station that afternoon.

Hinata’s mom suggested to the boys that all the third-year parents come together to create a big feast. With next week’s exam, there won’t be any time for socializing and sleeping overs so, bringing them together plus family would be nice. It was a last-minute idea but once she made a few calls and decided what dishes everyone would make; the dinner was set in stone for tomorrow night.

Time was moving too fast for Hinata’s liking. It seemed like just yesterday he ran into Karasuno’s gym and into that stupid, calcium filled Kageyama. Now, they were taking the next steps into the adult part of their lives by going to college. Hinata wanted his team to progress and grow into a better them but, he was also selfish and wanted to keep them under his wing. He’s expressed this to Kageyama but his reasoning was debunked when the setter reminded him that they all planned on attending the same university.

It won’t be the same, honestly. In high school, they were always together for the most part. Practicing, conditioning, summer camps, classes, studying, etc. In university, they will have completely different schedules depending on their majors. The team might not even pursue volleyball but non-sports related extracurriculars and break off into their own cliques.

What if one or two of them did go into volleyball? College level sports were always way more competitive and they wouldn’t have the time to link up because they’d be in practice all the time.

This was a disaster! The only way to stop this blasphemous from taking place was to sabotage the graduation ceremony or have everyone agree to fail the entrance exams.

“Shōyō!” Hinata’s mom called the ginger, interrupting him from his devious scheme. He hopped to his feet and briskly followed the sound of his mom’s voice to the front door. “I told you to be ready 10 minutes ago. Don’t think you aren’t going to help us carry those groceries back here.”

She, Natsu, and even Kageyama were impatiently waiting for him in the genkan.

“That was my plan all along, mom. To have you wait for me while I devise my murderous plot to take over the graduation,” Hinata whispered to himself as he rubbed his palms together. He brought his attention back to the three of them as if they didn’t clearly see what he just did. “But we can go to the market, first.”

* * *

The ground trembled and cracked right under their feet. The trees danced along the wind’s strong current as leaves from their branches fell with style onto the moving buses. The birds scattered to the clear blue sky and called out to their loved ones, _Get in the house where it’s safe_!

Two of three young adults who were dressed to impress, froze in their spots as they listened and put their guard up for what was to come. The one who was unfazed by such that was going on around him, counted backward from three as he absentmindedly pushed his glasses up his nose.

 _Three_ , _two_ , _one_ …

“Everything is not a fucking race, Hinata!”

“Then why do you keep speeding up?!”

In the distance, you could make out two direct figures quickly making their way towards the three young adults who only shook their heads at their friends’ immature behavior. Kageyama abruptly stopped in front of Tsukishima, while Hinata let himself fall into Yachi’s stable, open arms.

“Glad you guys could make it…15 minutes late,” Tsukishima looked at his wrist which was devoid of a watch.

“We’re here, aren’t we?” Kageyama rolled his eyes.

“Don’t start,” Yamaguchi sighed.

“I was here first, though,” Hinata said with a bragging grin.

“I think it was a tie,” Yachi interjected.

“Nevermind that. Kageyama, Hinata, please try to remember your home training today,” Yamaguchi put a hand on his hip as he warned the two. “We don’t want a repeat of the last trip we took together.”

“Ugh, I can’t even look at a brownie without gagging,” Yachi held her stomach.

“Please don’t bring that up,” Tsukishima cut in and motioned for them all to get a move on.

While no one was looking, Kageyama pushed the back of Hinata’s knee in with the toe of his shoe and, Hinata retaliated by slapping the back of his neck.

“I can see you,” Yamaguchi said aloud without looking back.

The train ride went along smoothly with the team sitting in comfortable silence, bunched up in one car. Once they departed, the group walked a short distance to the hydrangea smothered house of worship. Curious eyes filled with sparkles as they walked through the lilac pastel, flowery entrance, past historical busts, and to the main hall of the temple. There was a small introduction given by a worker of the temple and a tour was optional to those who wanted to see every aspect of the sacred grounds.

The teens ventured on their own into a prayer room and all kneeled down in a line before a stone shrine. They clasped their hands and requested for only good results and news from their exam scores and university letters. There was only one who internally solicited for their non-existent love life to flourish despite the many odds against it. It was like asking for the impossible but, one could still hope and will it.

Yachi took a group picture before they left and promised to print more for each to have their own.

“I hate the real version of you all. Why would I want a two-dimensional version?” Tsukishima sniggered to himself.


	10. Chapter 10

The team was dallying in one of the several lounging rooms at a reasonably priced café. The lounges consisted of recliners, couches, throw blankets, pillows and even desks if you wanted that kind of room. There were a lot of high school students who came, especially during exams, to study or to have a hangout spot. The establishment conformed to the sedative environment they know students need, ergo, creating more business for themselves.

Hinata calmly took a sip from his mug and nearly coughed up the liquid. This was exactly why he never tried new things on the menu, it’s because he never liked them. But, mean ass Tsukishima was nice enough to pay for his order, thus he would pinch his nose and swallow this one time. He took another sip and peered over the rim to look at Kageyama sitting on the couch across from him. The raven carefully held his mug with both hands and softly blew against the top of it before bringing it to his lips.

 _He’s even cute when does trivial things like drinking_.

 “…then Tsukki came in and took care of those mean kids for me. Immediately, I knew that I wanted him to be my friend but, I think I saw him more as my hero,” Yamaguchi finished his story with a proud smile.

Yachi awed the story while Kageyama snickered under his breath.

“I don’t think that counts as your most embarrassing memory because Tsukishima is the one who’s turning red,” Hinata blatantly pointed out.

“Oops, sorry Tsukki,” Yamaguchi scratched the back of his head. “I’ll share my strawberry cake with you.”

“I’m fine, my drink is just hot,” Tsukishima mumbled.

“But, you have an iced latte,” Yachi smirked.

“I thought that this was supposed to be about Yamaguchi,” Tsukishima huffed. “Whose turn is it next?”

“It’s on me,” Kageyama cleared his throat and set his mug down.

“Ok, Kageyama. The dumbest thing that you have ever done, confession, or humiliating story?” Yachi laid out his options.

“Dumbest thing.”

“Ok, go.”

“When I was a kid, I had a pet cat named Meg. She was very picky and would only eat a specific brand of cat food. I wondered what made her like it that much so I decided to eat it,” Kageyama explained. “I threw up on the spot.”

There was a moment of silence in the lounge that was interrupted by a small beep. Everyone looked at Hinata as he tapped at his phone and held it out towards them. A recording of Kageyama’s story replayed and a mischievous sneer spread across his lips.

“Nothing personal, Bakayama. It’s just business,” Hinata shrugged.

“You’re an idiot,” Kageyama hissed.

“He isn’t the one who thought Meg’s food was a five-star meal,” Tsukishima remarked, causing everyone else to laugh.  

“Fuck you,” Kageyama shot back.

“Guys, we’re supposed to be together having fun, not telling one another off,” Yachi stood and walked to the doorway, “I’m going to get a dessert. If I hear any commotion, you’re not going to like what’ll happen when I get back.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the boys straightened up before nodding in unison.

“She’s so cute when she takes charge,” Yamaguchi sighed.

Hinata snorted as he took a sip from his mug. “Have you asked her out yet?”

“He did and got rejected twice,” Tsukishima answered for him.

“She accepted on the third time, didn’t she!?” Yamaguchi snapped. “We’re taking things really slow at least until this fall, once school gets situated. What about you guys? At least, I have someone.”

Wait a second…

“Tsukishima seems like he’s bitter about not having a girlfriend,” Kageyama shrugged.

“I’m sorry, I don’t remember asking for your opinion,” Tsukishima deadpanned. “I don’t see you walking around with someone hanging from your arm.”

Hinata’s grip on his mug tightened. He didn’t like where this conversation was going.

“Unlike you, I don’t need to have anything on display for others to confirm,” Kageyama reasoned. “ _She_ knows that what we have is only between us.”

“Yeah, right…” Tsukishima debated, but the rest of it was tuned out. The other two may not have known if Kageyama was telling the truth or just teasing but, Hinata did. The situation took a sharp left in his eyes and his straining chest would agree. Yachi came back amid the banter but Hinata’s focus was solely on Kageyama. Was he lying when he said that it was only physical? Did he really care about City Girl, or was he just putting up false colors?

 _Does it really matter which one it is_? A voice in the back of his head asked him.

Hinata stared down into his cup as unwelcomed memories filled his head.

 _I don’t need to be reminded_ , _I’m over it._

 _Then act like it_ , the voice reprimanded. _You’re the only one suffering_.

He was, wasn’t he?

Regardless of what Kageyama said, even if he never sees City Girl again, Hinata was the only one crying his eyes dry. Back then, falling for Kageyama seemed like the smartest and easiest thing to do in the world. Now that he knew the truth, it just felt plain stupid to continue to yearn for the boy. But, why does he have to drop everything and forget what he feels, what he wants most? Why does everything have to be black and white?

“…but that would have never happened had the meteor not struck the earth.”

Were there no shades of gray?

“That won’t change my mind. I’m still on team tiny t-rex.”

Hinata shook out of his stupor and brought his attention back to his friends.

“You see what you did there? That was completely incorrect, they’re called velociraptors,” Tsukishima sounded intense.

“What do you think, Hinata?” Yachi acknowledged her curly headed friend.

They all looked at him as if his response was the end all, be all.

“Umm, accommodate to the harsh environment?”

Yamaguchi and Tsukishima both cheered while Kageyama and Yachi dropped their heads in defeat.

 _Accommodate_ …


	11. Chapter 11

“Thank you for the food,” the families prayed in unison before digging into the feast. The unanimous decision to have the spread at Yachi’s apartment didn’t go without repercussions to each of the boys’ head. The Yachi abode wasn’t exactly made for guests to frequent whether welcomed or unwelcomed, hence the team had to use coffee tables and an old kotatsu as a makeshift dining table.

The Hinata’s were present, Yamaguchi brought his dad, Kageyama and his mom, Tsukishima invited his older brother, and of course, the Yachi’s were hosting. There was plenty of food to go around the room as well as _humbling_ childhood stories as told by the older guests.

There was not one sassy comeback from any of the teens as they looked at their own relatives in utter perturbation. They couldn’t even laugh at one another’s humiliation because whoever as much as chuckled would be up next for exposure. And don’t worry, the families were sure that there was a story that could top the last. Yamaguchi’s dad could bet each of his freckles on that as Yachi’s mom could gamble future nail appointments.

Quite frankly, Hinata would have loved to take the fact that he got stuck in the toilet bowl when he was younger to his grave. And why did his mom have to carry a picture of the past incident in her wallet? He mentally berated himself for thinking that he wanted to spend more time at home with his family and friends. There was only so much that his heart could take; he was ready to go to university like yesterday.

The ginger felt a small tap on his foot from under the quilt of the kotatsu. He looked up at Kageyama who motioned his head to the side as his eyes looked in the direction of the kitchen. The two excused themselves and sighed in relief for the attention that wasn’t on them for the time being.

“I just want to confirm that what has been said tonight will stay here,” Kageyama started, before clearing his voice. Hinata quickly inclined. “I wanted to talk to you about something that has been bothering me.”

“What’s up?” Hinata leaned back against the counter of the island.

“Before I say it, promise that you won’t laugh,” the taller boy murmured, his bottom lip slightly pushed out. “I’ve been tortured enough for the night.”

‘He’s so adorable’, Hinata couldn’t help but think to himself. Although, he didn’t let his inner amusement show on his face. This must be something quite serious if Kageyama couldn’t come out and say what he was thinking.

“I’m all ears,” Hinata said as he put his right hand on his chest and left hand in the air. Kageyama nodded before leaning next to Hinata.

“Things are changing and I don’t like them. I’m afraid to go to school next year. Wait! No, not afraid of school, but afraid of what will happen once we get there. The two of us…I don’t know what will happen. You were saying that you might not take up volleyball and I can’t join by myself. The school is big and because we’re first years we don’t get to choose who our roommates are. I know I’m a hypocrite because I told you not to worry before but—”

Ok, Hinata wasn’t expecting that at all.

“Calm down, Kageyama,” Hinata’s voice cut through his blabbering. “You aren’t making any sense. What are you trying to say?”

Anxiety was plain on the setter’s face as he searched for the right words to say. “Basically, I’m terrified that we will drift apart and not be as close as we are now. When we get to school, I mean.”

Now Hinata understood. Kageyama was afraid of the same thing Hinata was stressing about before. He didn’t want their friendship to be affected by this huge milestone in their lives either. And all this time, Hinata figured that Kageyama would be contempt with just being on the same campus as him. He felt a huge wave of relief wash over him as well as a few drops of confidence.

“Kageyama, listen to me,” the ginger’s voice was filled with certainty. “This is going to sound lame but, I don’t care. How about we make a pact? A pact that prohibits us from giving up on one another, losing each other, and anything along the lines of not having each other’s back.”

“Hinata, that sounds stupid as hell,” Kageyama shook his head.

“Using a promise to keep our friendship intact is stupid to you?” Hinata chuckled, not at all fazed by Kageyama’s unenthusiastic attitude. “How about you trust me? You always have.”

Hinata put his right-hand face down on the counter between them. Kageyama still looked hesitant to accept that, his brows were furrowed in doubt. He moved to comply.

“Hold on” Hinata withdrew before Kageyama could touch him. “There’s one thing you need to think about. We aren’t kids anymore, no matter how much you—I want it to stay that way. I think if you want to look towards the future, then some things must change. Most things will change and there isn’t any way to stop it.”

Hinata returned his hand.

“But, everything isn’t so black and white,” he continued slowly, his words leaving more of an impression on himself versus his friend. Why didn’t these thoughts occur to him before? “No one said that you have to go through the changes alone.”

At that moment, Hinata saw it. The shade of a light gray that had been waiting to be chosen out of all the black and white strips of color schemes. He turned his hand palm up and held Kageyama’s indecisive gaze. “I don’t know, though. I’m just a dumbass.”

The gleam of enlightenment that shone in Kageyama’s eyes implied his understanding of Hinata’s explanation. The setter promptly grabbed Hinata’s hand with a strong grip yet not tight enough to cause pain. “You got that right,” he agreed, his face smug.

* * *

 Hinata realized how the meaning of his words didn’t have the same impact that they should have had on himself. Kageyama comprehended the epiphany at face value while Hinata was only looking at it as closure if you will. Even though the affair put his heart in shambles (it might still be in such a state) he could get over it and look onwards to the next four years with Kageyama. Yes, that would be his gray in between because he would still have the raven, just not the way that he wanted. Hinata was ok with that or else his talk about changing was bullshit.

His head was in one place, the right place for the rest of the week. Hinata hadn’t ever felt so sure about an exam more than he did his national and Tohoku U one. He breezed through the days it took to finish each section and was quite proud of the writer’s callus on his middle finger. He got positive texts from his friends all saying that they were also buoyant about their performances, not that he was the least bit surprised.

He’d also made his mind up on if he’d accept his volleyball scholarship from the university as well. As long as he went to his dream school, he’d be fine either way. He texted Kageyama that he’d let him know what his choice was after graduation. Of course, Kageyama threatened to harm him in gory ways if he didn’t tell him already. The ginger was yet again unfazed by his friend’s serious attitude.

After the exam results came out, Hinata’s mom and sister went to buy fabric, hair pieces, and accessories to wear for Hinata’s graduation. Not many of Hinata’s friends knew that his mother was skilled with a needle and thread; they often wondered where he got such fashionable yukatas during the summer and festivals.

Later that day, Hinata got news that he, Tsukishima, and Yachi were getting into Tohoku but didn’t hear anything from the other two third years. Kageyama’s mother was kind but strict when it came to school so Hinata wasn’t unaware of why he hadn’t gotten a text from him. What he wasn’t ready for was to not hear from the stupid boy until the practice graduation ceremony. And even then, Kageyama didn’t acknowledge or speak to him.

During the actual graduation, when everyone was dressed to the nines, diplomas were ready to be passed out, and songs were singing did Kageyama approach him. Hinata had been secretly practicing a right hook that Natsu taught him and couldn’t wait to test it on Kageyama’s big ass head. So, one could only imagine the shock he felt when the raven embraced him before he couldn’t even get an insult out.

Someone ran into Kageyama from behind and tried to circle their short arms around them both. Kageyama turned his head and saw Yachi burying her face in his back. Not a moment later did Yamaguchi come from the side and wrap his arms around Hinata’s and Kageyama’s neck with tears in his eyes. Tsukishima came from behind Hinata but instead of joining in on the group hug, he put a hand on top of Hinata’s head and tried to look as cool as possible. Well, as cool as he could be with those LED dinosaur glasses from his brother that he sported.

Hinata finally asked why was Kageyama ignoring him, the reason was that Hinata made him wait until graduation to hear his decision on the scholarship. As revenge, he decided not to talk to him until graduation either.

“That’s fucked up,” Hinata replied under his breath but eventually let it go. He told that he would accept his scholarship and in return, Kageyama told his exam results. Now including Hinata, Tsukishima and Kageyama were going into school on volleyball scholarships while Yachi and Yamaguchi were going on merit.

Many pictures were taken and sentimental messages that tugged at the heartstrings, but also a few laughs to relieve the bittersweet moments with comedy. One of those messages was given by Natsu, it dedicated to her wonderful brother and his friends. Although Hinata was the only one to receive a panda bear plushie, the love for the other four was still there.

By and by, the families dispersed to their respected destinations after saying their last goodbyes to one another. All things had gone according to plan and Hinata couldn’t have been any happier. He was starting to see his words to Kageyama as more than closure and stated value. When things change they didn’t always have to be for the worse but for things to cultivate and prosper as well. At least, he thought he was wise enough to have that growth mindset.

The ginger was currently lying on his bed, his head resting on a pillow over Natsu’s lap in between her legs. She was busy putting her new hair accessories in his hair along with massaging his temples. He was on his phone scrolling through his contact list of all the numbers he’d collected through high school to delete the ones he’d never use again. He was on the ‘T’ category when he felt an uncomfortable tug on the side of his head.

“Natsu, that hurts!” he complained as he flinched.

“I’m sorry but Brother your hair is so wild, it curled around my combed,” she responded and rubbed the irritated spot. “Your head seems to have a mind of its own.”

“If you rip my hair out then I’m going to take yours to cover the bald spot.”

“ _I’d like to see you try_!”

Both gingers jumped at the random voice before recognizing that it was coming from Hinata’s phone. Hinata raised it to his ears and greeted the person who, apparently, wasn’t going down without a fight.

“Sister Tanaka? My apologies, I ghost dialed you.”

“ _Don’t worry about it. Besides, I don’t think blonde goes with orange_ _anyways_.”

Hinata snorted at her joke before getting hit with another genius idea.

“Sister Tanaka, aren’t you talented with styling hair?”


	12. Chapter 12

“Don’t forget to call home at least once a week.”

“Yes, mom.”

“College isn’t like high school. Don’t use the same slacking habits that you did your first year. Study hard, ok?”

“I know, mom.”

“You got into this school on a scholarship but don’t let it go to your head.”

“I won’t.”

“I’m not just talking about the money. Confidence and arrogance are two sides of the same coin. You’re very gifted at volleyball but just because you’re in the starting lineup doesn’t mean you can use that position to your advantage. Hard wor—”

“Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. I know, I know.”

It was move-in day at Tohoku U and Hinata’s family were at the train station to see him off. Hinata had his luggage suitcases ready to roll out and a bookbag hanging from his back. His panda bear plushie, Kevin, was poking out from the top zipper and his train ticket was in his pocket. His face seemed cool, calm, and collected on the outside but on the inside, he felt a mixture of elation and apprehension. He was an official university student!

The opposite could be said about his mother. She was giving him heads up and tips on the way there but as they got closer to the station the trembling in her voice was hard to ignore. Natsu on the other hand just looked pissed off but Hinata knew better.

“My baby is leaving me,” Hinata’s mom said with a pained expression on her face. Hinata pulled her head to his chest with a smile. “You know how proud I am of you. Do your best.” She reached up to push his cheeks in with her palms and brought his head down to kiss the tip of his nose. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” he responded. Next, he squatted down in front of Natsu who had her arms folded over her chest. Hinata tried so hard not to laugh at the hardness in her manner, the act was only an act, after all.

“I’ll be back during the holidays so take care of mom until then, yeah? Be good.”

“Obviously,” she shrugged and looked away.

“Is that all I get?” He whined before holding his arms out. “But, I love you.”

Natsu tried to fight it but her mask cracked and she threw her arms around his neck. When she pulled away, her face was shiny with tears and Hinata wiped under her eyes with his thumbs. He pushed her cheeks in with his palms and kissed the tip of her nose. Hinata waited until he boarded the train and couldn’t see his two favorite girls anymore to wipe his own cheek with the back of his hand.

* * *

The campus was everything that Hinata imagined and more. The scenery, the architecture, and the thousands of people who were bustling through the streets and around him. He deeply inhaled the air taking note of all the weird smells that violated his nasal passages before moving further. The map that he had of the campus was hard to read and with his belongings, he couldn’t exactly hold it and follow its path. Fortunately, there were signs and arrows pointing in different directions guiding him to the correct dorm building.

He went through the whole checking in process, getting his key, and squeezing past people who bumped into him without saying ‘excuse me’. He found his way to a suite style room that held three single bedrooms, a kitchen, and a common room. All rooms were furnished except for the kitchen which meant that if they wanted to cook, they’d have to buy their own dishes. Judging by the lack of sound and luggage, he deduced that he was the first one in the room. Hinata had no idea who his roommates were going to be but, he was still excited to meet them.

It took about two hours to unpack and set his assigned room up the way he wanted. That was when he heard the door opening and lots of shuffling. He took a breath, calmed himself, and casually walked to the common room to meet his new roomie.

“This isn’t disappointing at all,” Tsukishima chuckled to himself as he brought his suitcases in.

“Just my luck,” Hinata rolled his eyes as he put a hand on his hip. "I just can’t catch a break.”

The blonde closed the door behind him and went to take a seat on the couch. “I almost didn’t recognize you at first glance,” he said before taking out his phone. “It looks nice.”

Was Hinata hearing that right? Tsukishima was giving him a compliment? It caught him off guard.

“Oh, I appreciate that,” Hinata replied as his hands involuntarily reached for his hair.

After last semester ended, Hinata got in touch with Tanaka Saeko, an older sister figure of Karasuno’s volleyball team. He knew that she was currently in graduate school and that she cut and styled hair as a hobby. After giving it no thought at all, Hinata asked if she could cut his hair. It was its usual long and wild at the top but his temples were faded and the back had a low undercut. New school, new him.

“Are you excited as I am for this year?” Hinata joyed. “I’m so ready for like all of it. Have you heard from the others yet?”

“Probably not as much as you but I’m ready. Aside from the motivational group text that Yachi sent out a couple of days ago, I haven’t heard from anyone.”

No big deal. He would see the rest of his friends soon enough with orientation and things of the like going on. Besides, he was here to expand his horizons and make friends with other people, too.

Not long after did their third roommate come through the door. The guy was awkward and quiet, a big contrast to Hinata’s animated personality, but Hinata was positive that they would get along just fine.


	13. Chapter 13

Today was the orientation for the incoming freshman. Hinata had to be there at a certain time because his last name was in the beginning of the alphabet. Sadly, the poor boy snoozed his alarm about three times before he dragged himself from the bed. The time on the clock told him that he had 30 minutes and counting to get dressed and sign in at the administration building.

“Tsukishima, _please_ open the door. I don’t have much time,” Hinata cried as his impatient fist hammered on the bathroom door.

“You should’ve gotten up when you were supposed to,” Tsukishima said. “Now, you have to wait.”

“Just do me this one favor and I’ll never be late to anything again,” Hinata promised. He pushed his lips into the crack where the opening of the door and wall meet before singing Tsukishima’s name. The lock clicked and the door was yanked open by the annoyed blond wearing a dinosaur robe.

“You have ten minutes, you damn tangerine,” Tsukishima spoke with a gentle tone that betrayed the scowl on his face. Hinata quickly bowed in gratitude before rushing through his morning routine.

Classes hadn’t even officially started and Hinata was already stressed. He was discombobulated from the start because he had to rush to the administration building and he didn’t even know where it was. Once he found it, he checked his name off, received a name tag and a university shirt. He anticipated that he’d get his class schedule, get a tour of the campus so he knew where to find his classes, and get to go back to his room. No, that wasn’t the plan at all.

The orientation volunteers at the tables told him that the students wouldn’t receive their schedules until the program was over to ensure that everyone would stay for the whole duration. The actual induction was held in the school’s recreation center. Hinata didn’t know whose idea it was to hold hundreds of freshmen in one gym and guessed that they didn’t think that one through.

There were long, repetitive speeches from representatives of the school, they had their own dance that was performed by the orientation volunteers, and no one thought to turn the AC on. The students weren’t interactive with the games that the volunteers put together and it eventually got boring.

Next, they had the students to separate into groups of the field that they wanted careers in. Hinata was undecided so when that major was called out, he followed the flow of students who circled around four of the volunteers.

Out of habit, he squeezed himself to the front of the crowd to get a better look at who was talking. Sometimes he forgets that he isn’t as short as he once was so there isn’t a need to be in the front of gathering. Though, he was glad he did because two of the volunteers that were present were none other than Sugawara Kōshi and Sawamura Daichi, his former teammates.

“Mom and Dad!” Hinata screamed before he could stop himself.

Uh oh, that was supposed to be an inside joke between his former, older teammates. He got weird looks from the people around him and the speaker glared at him for interrupting. Suga looked ready to burst from the shock of seeing his junior; Daichi put a hand on Suga's shoulder to keep him from running over to Hinata.

The volunteers finished briefing the undecided majors on what the title entailed and was to give them a tour of the campus for the remaining time they had left. Then, Hinata was to go back to the gym and they’d give out the class schedules by last names. He allowed the students to get in front of him as they walked so that he could chat with Suga and Daichi.

“Oh my God, Hinata you look so handsome! Look at how much you’ve grown,” Suga exclaimed as he reached up and rustled Hinata’s locks. Typical Mom.

“Still not as tall as I am,” Daichi gloated with a smirk. “Though, I have to agree with Suga.”

Hinata was smiling so wide that he feared his cheeks would get stuck in its position. He laughed off his embarrassment and tipped his head forward in thanks.

Of course, he brought them to speed on the old team’s condition before he graduated. He asked about their majors, current club affiliations and life in college. Neither Daichi nor Suga continued to play volleyball but every now and again they would go to the gym and toss around. Suga was invested in a mental health club along with three other clubs, and still had time to volunteer for lots of events. Daichi had his own radio show on campus that was popular and was in two of the same clubs as Suga.

“Last time I checked, everyone was doing well. Tsukishima is my roommate, too, so that’s a thing,” Hinata shrugged. “The two of us and Kageyama are on the volleyball team. Do you see the other guys on campus?”

“Eh, not often so we have to make dates to catch up,” Daichi explained. “We’re all doing our own thing but Suga and I are always paired up.”

“I can’t wait to see the rest of you,” Suga groaned. “I have the same cell phone number, ok? Make sure you give it to the others and we’ll all have lunch. Daichi’s treat.”

“Wait, what?”

“Sure thing, Suga!”

After the tour, Suga and Daichi returned to their duties as volunteers and bid Hinata until next time. The ginger collected his schedule and planned to eat at the cafeteria to take care of his rumbling stomach. The notification ringtone of his phone tinkled in his pocket and he was glad to see that it was a text from Kageyama. ‘About time,’ he thought.

(1/1) _Hey. I’m done with my orientation. Where are you?_

 _I’m about to get something to eat. Wanna join?_ Hinata texted back.

(1/2) _Yeah, I’m headed outside the gym now._

(2/2) _Holy shit Hinata, I think you have a doppelgänger!_


	14. Chapter 14

_Those things aren’t real, Kageyama._ Hinata sent.

(1/1) _This one must be because he looks exactly like you. Only different and cooler, too lol.  I’ll send a pic._

Hinata rolled his eyes at the text and simply waited until the attachment came a moment later. At first glance, he would totally agree that, yes, there were some similarities. At a closer inspection, he would also agree that the person looked cool because the person in the picture was him. Seeing that the shot was taken from behind, Hinata slowly turned around and scanned the crowd until he caught sight of his best friend.

From the looks of it, Hinata wasn’t the only one who decided to switch and mix it up. Kageyama’s hair was more or less cut the same length all around and he had a side part that swept his hair to the right. Not having the bangs covering the top half of his face made a huge difference and Hinata didn’t know why. He was wearing those stylish nonprescription glasses and wait, was that a piercing in his ear?

Just from years of practice, Hinata could keep his face neutral at the sight of his striking friend. The look on Kageyama’s face was priceless, however, when Hinata gave him his thousand-watt smile. Something like astonishment mirrored his features and Hinata loved every piece of it.

“I never imagined I’d hear you say that I was cool,” Hinata joked as he lightly punched Kageyama’s shoulder. “It’s nice, right?”

“Technically, I didn’t say it. I thought you were someone else and so they were cool”, Kageyama said, trying to cover up the fact that he was taken aback. “You look different.”

Hinata wanted to squeal like those fangirls who used to fawn over Kageyama in high school. That was the closest thing to a compliment that he’d get from the setter outside of sports but he’d gladly take it. Besides, his hair wasn’t the only thing different about Hinata that surprised Kageyama. He may or may not have had a _tiny_ change of wardrobe.

As a graduation present, Hinata's mom gave him money that she’d been previously saving for his schoolings. One half went into Natsu’s current account and he used the other half to buy himself something pretty. Actually, he bought many pretty things because according to Tohoku, Hinata was going to school for free.

Graphic tees and jeans were fine to wear on a normal day as well as sweats and a hoodie on a lazy day. Hinata just wanted to have the option to look offhandedly flawless without the suit and tie. It wouldn’t be his fault if he broke a couple of necks as they turned to look at him. That isn’t to say that he would be narcissistic about it, he was still just as modest.

What was Kageyama’s excuse for looking like he just got done with a photo shoot? His change in appearance was simple yet, Hinata felt like he was talking to a whole new person. It was all in his head, he presumed.

“Thanks, I think,” Hinata chuckled as he scratched the back of his neck. “Shall we go?”

“Maybe we should go back to the room and set our things down first?”

“I don’t want to make two trips. Just bring it.”

Kageyama nodded and led the way to a student cafeteria that was shown to him on the tour. It wasn’t too far from the freshman dorms and the prices were inexpensive. Hinata dubbed it as their regular spot until they explored and found something better.

“Who are your roommates?” Hinata questioned as the duo carried their trays from the food assembly line to a table. “I’m with Tsukishima and a guy named Sato.”

“Seriously? I’m with Yamaguchi and two other guys.”

“Some call it destiny.”

“I think most would call it, ‘we came to the same university so it isn’t odd that we happened to room together’.”

Hinata stuck his tongue out and tried to steal one of Kageyama’s pickles which got him a kick to the shin.

“You’re lucky that there are too many witnesses around,” the ginger growled.

“I’m not worried,” Kageyama assured before presenting a yellow folder that they both received after orientation. It contained their schedules and a booklet advertising different clubs and organizations. Hinata took his schedule out too, to compare classes.

“Yes! We have Basic Japanese and Psychology together,” Hinata cheered. “What’s your major?”

“Health Science. You?” Kageyama responded.

“Undecided for now. Oh, that just reminded me. I talked with Suga and Daichi earlier.”

“So did I. Mom looked like he was about to cry when he saw me.”

“That’s Suga for you,” Hinata laughed.

The teens headed back to the dorms after the meal to see one another’s rooms. Hinata lived on the fourth floor while Kageyama lived on the seventh. Hinata wanted to show off his room first, certain that it would be better than Kageyama’s.

“Welcome to my lair,” Hinata announced as if he was on a television show. They removed their shoes and Kageyama did a little snooping around. Tsukishima and Sato were probably still at orientation, Hinata assumed when he didn’t see their shoes in the genkan.

“My dorm is bigger, probably because we have more people,” Kageyama observed. “But they’re designed the same way.”

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Hinata called over his shoulder as he walked through the hall to his room. “This is the master suite.”

He unlocked the door and went straight to the bed, flopping down on the mattress. He reached for his panda plushie and held it to his chest. Kageyama came in a few seconds later and took a seat in Hinata’s desk chair.

“This is the royal prince, Kevin.”

“Kevin?” Kageyama raised a brow at the foreign name. “I think we’ve met before. It’s a perfect for when you have nightmares and need something to make you feel safe.”

“Don’t you dare disrespect his majesty ever again,” Hinata tightened his hold protectively. “You’re just jealous because you wake up in puddles after a nightmare. And I’m not talking about sweat.”


	15. Chapter 15

The duo went to Kageyama’s room to talk to Yamaguchi for a few minutes before he left for orientation. Hinata suggested that the three of them, plus Tsukishima, go out and see what the campus life was about when everyone was free. Yamaguchi declined and reminded them that each floor will be holding a meeting to introduce the resident assistants that evening. The two were as clueless as always so Yamaguchi showed them how to set up their school email on his laptop.

In their inboxes, were emails from the resident director telling them what time the floor meetings were at. There were also emails from the school’s varsity volleyball manager pertaining things like meeting the team, practices, and uniform pickup.

“You guys need to be aware of these kinds of things,” Yamaguchi chided. “Check your email at least once a day. When I get back, I’ll show you how to check your personal homepage later.”

“Right,” they agreed in unison.

Yamaguchi left for the day and Kageyama went to take a nap. Hinata wasn’t happy about being by left himself but there were other things he could do like scope the recreation center. He would be going there daily so better to find the quickest route now. He got as far as he remembered from the tour before whipping out his map for reference.  

“I’m following the blue line,” he said to himself aloud. “I should be passing by a patch of flowers next to a pond then, loop aro—ahh!”

Hinata was yanked back by the collar of his shirt causing him to lose footing and land on his rear. His phone slid out of his pocket and he prayed that it would be crack free once he recovered it.

“I didn’t mean to make you fall but better than what could’ve happened though, right?” a chuckling voice spoke. Hinata huffed and looked up at a guy who held a hand out for Hinata to grab. Hinata pushed the guy’s hand away, grabbed his phone, and stood to his feet.

“Why did you do that?” Hinata questioned as he dusted off his backside.

“You were paying attention to this,” the guy started. He picked up Hinata’s torn and wrinkled map and pointed it to the ground. “But, you should’ve been watching out for that.”

Hinata cast his gaze down to his left where the familiar symbol of the school was engraved into the pavement. It’s large, flowery pattern circled the middle of the clearing where he and the guy were but Hinata wasn’t sure what was so special about it.

“If my screen had cracked because of this, you would’ve been paying to get it fixed,” Hinata replied and reached for his map. The guy held it behind his back.

“You’re probably a freshman since you don’t know but you’re not supposed to walk on here,” he responded. “You know how people say ‘don’t step on the petals’? They are implying this.”

Hinata wasn’t short-tempered but this guy was beginning to irritate him. If the school didn’t want people to walk here, then why the hell was it ingrained into the ground? Plus, there weren’t any signs or warnings that told him not to. They could’ve even put foot high wire fence around the emblem to keep idiots like this guy from pulling strangers to the ground.

“Thanks for the tip,” Hinata nodded. “Can I have my map back now? I have somewhere to be.”

“Only if you promise not to step on the petals,” the guy stepped forward. “I wouldn’t want you to get in trouble.”

Hinata couldn’t have cared less but unless he made the promise, it didn’t look like the guy was going to return the map.

“You know what?” Hinata smiled with his hands raised in a surrendering gesture, “It’s yours now.”

Hinata continued his way, careful not to step on the damn petals, towards the patch of flowers and pond. He thought he heard the guy say something but didn’t care enough to look back.

Weirdo.

* * *

"Do you remember what you told me this morning?” Tsukishima asked a panting Hinata.

The floor meeting was about to start and Hinata just made it back to the room from his quest. He showed up to the rec in one piece but before he had time to check out the gym, it was time to go back to meet his RA.

In fear of running into that weirdo again, Hinata took an alternate route that proved to be a horrible idea because he got lost. If he didn’t have the stamina of a pronghorn, he wouldn’t have been able to haul ass all the way back to the dorms like he did once he found his way.

“It wasn’t my fault, I swear!” Hinata tried to explain but Tsukishima just pushed him towards the door.

“Let’s go before we miss something important.”

They followed the flow of students into a lounge where a bunch of other students sat cross-legged on the floor. Three people were standing in the middle with papers and plastic bags in their hands. Hinata guessed they were the RA’s by how they were ordering people to sit and quiet down.

“We’re waiting for one more person to get here then we can start,” one male announced.

“You’d think he’d be the first one here. He is the leader of the meeting,” another male spoke and got a smack on the side of the head from the first male.

“Do I hear someone talking shit?!” a rambunctious yell came from around the corner. All heads swiveled in that direction while Hinata and Tsukishima exchanged glances. They knew that rowdy voice from anywhere and it could only belong to a bald Tanaka Ryū. Hinata’s favorite senpai and their former teammate.

“How about you say it to my face?” Tanaka tilted his head to the side as he approached the male who hid quickly behind his friend. “No? Well, then let’s get started.”


	16. Chapter 16

Needless to say, Tanaka was thrilled to see his old mates. After the meeting, they chatted and shared a few updates about their lives since they were all together. Hinata had seen Tanaka over the summer when he visited Saeko so there wasn’t much that he didn’t already know.

“You know where my room is and if you need anything feel free to drop by. I will be the best RA you will ever have.” Tanaka told them.

Tanaka also mentioned how the RA’s were throwing a party for the freshmen as welcome in the courtyard the next night. Hinata agreed to come and Tsukishima was nonchalant about it.

“It’s not a real party like you’ve seen in the movies,” Tanaka clarified. “It is approved by administration and is just for fun.”

He motioned the two to come in closer to what he said next.

“The real shit happens off campus. I’ll be sure to give you the information whenever something comes up. I always know where the parties are.”

Hinata playfully wiggled his eyebrows at Tsukishima, who rolled his eyes in response.

Instead of going back to Yamaguchi’s, Hinata just asked Tsukishima how to set up the important pages on his computer and things of the like. Hinata checked his email from the volleyball manager and recorded the information he gave. He wouldn’t forget what his mom said about not slacking. He planned on being an all-star in both his studies and volleyball.

Tomorrow, he and Kageyama were going to look over the non-sport related clubs and see which ones that they could join. On Sunday, Yamaguchi wanted to go kitchenware and food shopping for the rooms. And Monday was the first day of classes and practice.

Hinata was comforted by the fact that everything was going smoothly and not once did he hinder his mind with negative thoughts. There was nothing that he could think of that could ruin what he already knew was going to be an amazing year.

* * *

 “Hey.”

Hinata was doing what he did best, aside from volleyball, and that was minding his business. He didn’t know that the greeting was directed towards him until he felt a small tap on his shoulder. He was sitting down at a table for a club and filling out the signup sheet. He looked up and the person standing there was the same weirdo from the day before.

“Oh, hello,” Hinata said with a slight tip of his head.

He finished the sheet and returned it to the person who gave it to him. He got up from the table and walked in the opposite direction.

“Hey, wait up. I believe we met before,” the weirdo fell into step with him. “Do you remember me?”

“I remember how you pushed me to the ground and stole my map,” Hinata responded. He browsed the student’s faces around him, hoping one would match the one of his best friend's. Kageyama went to the restroom five minutes ago, what was taking him so long to get back?

“I didn’t get a chance to apologize for that,” he chuckled.

“Now is as good a time as any.”

The weirdo stepped in front of Hinata and deeply bowed at the waist. A couple people turned to stare and Hinata started to panic.

“I apologize for the misunderstanding. I hope that you can forgive me.”

“Alright already, get up,” Hinata took a step back and waved his hands. “You’re making a scene.”

He straightened up with a smile and took a step forward. Hinata still hoped that Kageyama would come rescue him already.

“My name is Kyoto, but you can just say Kyo,” he said. “I think your name might be, Hinata?”

“How did you…”, Hinata instinctively looked down at his shirt to make sure he wasn’t wearing anything with his name on it. Kyo pulled something from pocket and held it out for Hinata to see.

“I tried to tell you before that your name tag fell off, but you were already gone,” Kyo returned the sticky paper. “I like your name, it’s nice.”

Hinata tilted his head with a confused expression. Who was this guy?

Kyo was tall but still stood a few inches below Hinata. His hair was brown and styled in a two-block fringe that fell just above his dark eyes. The skin on the side of them crinkled when he gave that creepy smile of his. His build was average, Hinata couldn’t tell if he played sports or not. And…well, he wore nice shoes.

“I don’t want you to think I’m a weird guy,” Kyo hesitated.

Ha! Too late.

“I don’t,” Hinata shrugged.

“I just—you seem like you’re cool and you’re the only one I’ve talked to since coming here.”

Oh, so he wanted a friend? Why didn’t he just approach Hinata like a normal person and say that?

“Hinata?”

Kageyama was back from his long ass expedition to the restroom. If Hinata was getting brutally murdered, Kageyama couldn’t have done anything to save him. He joined the two, sipping a carton of milk and held flyers in his other hand. Hinata took a glance at Kyo who was looking at something in the background.

“Did you have an upset stomach or something?” Hinata questioned Kageyama.

“No,” Kageyama answered, but was looking at Kyo. “Who’s this?”

Promptly, Kyo’s phone went off in his pocket. He held up a finger and stepped away to take the call. He was only on it a few seconds before he hung up.

“I’m sorry, I have to go. Maybe I’ll see you later, Hinata?”

“Yeah, sure.”

With that, Kyo lightly bowed and left. Once he was out of sight, Hinata glared at Kageyama before taking his milk box and helping himself to some.

“What the hell are you doing? That’s mine,” Kageyama growled.

“Stop leaving me by myself,” Hinata protested. “Every time you do, something bad happens. Promise me that you won’t, and I’ll give it back.”

“…No,” Kageyama deadpanned and walked off.

“Oh my God, what did I just say?!”


	17. Chapter 17

"Do you think this looks fine?” Hinata asked.

“For the tenth time, the answer is yes,” Tsukishima replied, without looking up from his phone.

Hinata and Tsukishima were to meet Yamaguchi and Kageyama down at the RA hosted party. Hinata wanted to go all out since it was their first college party of many. But, Tsukishima made a good point in saying that they were only going to the courtyard to dance to music. Hinata would save his “fuck-em up” fit for the next time around.

He was very disappointed with how things kicked off. A lot the freshman stood around off to the sides watching the other students dance. The snack table held off-brand snacks and the drinks were gone in the first 15 minutes. The music was pretty good but, no one seemed to be into it. Hinata didn’t mind taking the initiative to step up to the plate but the butterflies in his stomach told him to take it easy. Tanaka wasn’t anywhere to be found and the other RA’s were awkwardly flailing about.

Tsukishima and Kageyama were just as awkward and Hinata was glad that Yamaguchi at least tried to find a rhythm. Could they look any more like dorks?

“I don’t want to be the only one moving, one of you dance with me,” Yamaguchi ordered. “Hinata, please?”

Yamaguchi pulled Hinata to the middle space and Hinata could feel the eyes on him.

“Try to look like you’re having fun,” Yamaguchi chuckled nervously.

Hinata gave in and followed his movements. A few other students from the side joined in, thankfully, and rocked about to the music.

“Who lied to us? This is nothing like the parties you see on tv,” Hinata said.

“Only the upperclassmen get that privilege.”

After a few more minutes of dancing, Hinata got tired and tagged out with Tsukishima. Kageyama said that he wouldn’t dance even if they threaten to kill him and stayed glued to the wall. Like Tsukishima, Kageyama didn’t put much effort into his outfit and came in jeans and a shirt.

“You look like you’re going to die,” Hinata joked.

“I only came because of the snacks and well, you see how that worked out,” Kageyama yawned. “I’m ready to go back to my room.”

Hinata rolled his eyes. “You say that now, but what about when it’s the real deal? There has to be something that will keep you awake.”

Kageyama shook his head and began to play with his earring.

Hinata was going to suggest they go back to the room if he hated it there that much until something caught his eye. A group of people dressed as if they were going to a real party were sneaking behind a random building. Hinata nudged Kageyama and directed his attention to the last person who looked back to make sure that no one was following them.

“I wonder where they’re going,” Hinata grinned.

“Too bad we’ll never know,” Kageyama shrugged.

“What is this ‘we’ you keep talking about? I’m going to check it out.”

Kageyama put an arm out to stop him. “No, you aren’t. They could be walking into a murder house for all you know.”

“Oh, please.” Hinata disregarded his warning to follow the group. Kageyama groaned before falling into step beside him.

Behind the building was a walking path surrounded by trees and bushes. That kind of setting was common in horror films and nosy people always died first. If they were headed to a murder house either way, then that didn’t make a difference.

The path opened to a rural neighborhood of sort, a few houses stood next to one another hedged with more trees and forestry. Students were everywhere, holding cups, and dancing to music with ground shaking bass. More people were walking down the path while some were leaving. Hinata guessed that these parties were a different ballgame than the RA hosted ones.

“Excuse me, are you freshmen?” A person wearing all black approached them. “I’m sorry, freshmen aren’t allowed back here.”

“We were just looking—"

“We were just leaving—"

Hinata shot Kageyama a glare and Kageyama motioned for him to turn back.

“Are you happy now?” Kageyama asked sarcastically. “You heard the guy, you can’t go. Now you can leave me alone talking about it.”

“You're mean for no reason,” Hinata folded his arms. “That’s why you don’t have any friends.”

“I’m fine with that,” Kageyama snorted. “My mom says that I don’t need any friends to be happy.”

“Mama’s boy,” Hinata mocked.

Another group came down the path, loud and rowdy. Hinata stepped to the side to let them through and then he heard his name.

“Hinata? Fancy meeting you here,” Kyo came from the front to speak. His moves were a bit sluggish and he couldn’t seem to keep his balance. “I didn’t take you for the party type.”

“I was just seeing where everyone else was going. We can’t get in,” Hinata shook his head. He looked to the friends who’d been staring at him the whole time. Didn't he say that he didn't know anyone earlier that day? "You make friends pretty quick. What’s your secret?”

Kyo glanced back before leaning in to whisper, though it was louder than one. “Pfft, I don’t know these guys. They’ve been following me around like I’m their mother.”

A few scoffs from his group and a couple of them went ahead without him. Kyo stepped beside Hinata and put an arm around his shoulder, pulling him in close.

“You can come with us if you’d like. I can get you in,” he offered with that creepy smile. Then, he tipped his head back to look at Kageyama as if he just noticed that he was there. “Unless…he doesn’t want that.”

This time, his friends burst out in snickers and one of them pulled Kyo by his collar before shoving him forward. “Don’t listen to anything he says, he’s an asshole.”

Hinata raised a brow and looked to Kageyama who had a familiar look of annoyance on his face.


	18. Chapter 18

Hinata was the first person to walk into his amphitheater styled classroom. He was elated about his first lesson of the year and it was obvious by the way he hummed to himself. Other students eventually walked in and took seats in the back while he decided to sit closer to the front. He kind of hoped someone would sit next to him in case the professor told them to work in teams. On the other hand, he hoped no one did because if he didn’t have a partner he could work by himself. Despite his friendly and open nature, sometimes Hinata would rather work alone.

This was an English language class, one of the required general education courses needed to graduate. English wasn’t his area of expertise, the most he could do fluently was introduce himself. But, he also knew a plethora of vocabulary words and that was all he needed to pass in high school. Maybe the professor will have mercy on his non-native tongue.

While Hinata labeled his notebook the title of the course, a student took a seat next to him.

“Would you mind me sitting here?”

“Of course not, you ca—hey!” Hinata gasped then put a hand over his mouth for being loud.

“It’s always a surprise to see you,” Kyo said as he took his books out. “Though, I can’t help but get the feeling that you’re stalking me.”

Hinata narrowed his eyes as he pointed a finger at Kyo. “If anything, you’ve been stalking me. I hope you don’t take pictures or send death threats to my address.”

Hinata motioned as if he was closing the top part of a robe and shrunk away from Kyo.

“Now that’s not nice,” Kyo chuckled. “I would never send you a death threat. But if I ever took a picture of you, it’s because I want to hang it up in a museum to admire.”

The cheesy line flew right over Hinata’s head. There were still a few things young Hinata had to learn because he was quite socially inept in these kinds of situations. He didn’t know when someone was making an advance at him because no one ever did. He didn’t know how to make an advance at a romantic interest because he never had to.

In Kageyama's case, there were many factors that brought Hinata very close to him that there wasn’t more he needed to do. Largely, after he guessed that Kageyama didn't swing that way. And even more so when it was visually proven. 

Not that he put any thought into it, it was just a compliment and friends give them all the time. Hinata wouldn’t mistake Kyo’s kindness for affection especially when doing so has backfired in the past.

“How was that party?” Hinata asked.

“I have to be honest with you,” Kyo whispered. “I don’t remember anything from that night.”

“Oh, sometimes my memory can be bad, too. I can’t remember what I had for dinner yesterday.”

“No, that’s not it,” Kyo scratched the back of his head. The innocent, confused look on Hinata’s face told him that it was better to not explain what he really meant. “Anyways, what are you studying?”

“Undecided. You?”

“English and a TESOL minor.”

“That’s why you have this class,” Hinata nodded. “You’ll pass with flying colors.”

“I hope so.”

The professor entered the class not too long after and began to explain the syllabus and plan for the semester. He was an American who spoke Japanese so the students could understand but going forward would only be English. Did Hinata have to be an all-star, or could he just be a good student? Because he could already see his future-self procrastinating.

Hinata walked out of class with a blank stare. It was set in stone that he would have to retake that course next year because he was surely going to fail.

“Don’t look so down, Hinata,” Kyo put a hand on his shoulder. “It won’t be that bad.”

“Says the English major,” Hinata grumbled. “I’ll just study until I pass out.”

“Or...we could study together,” Kyo shrugged. “My English isn’t perfect but, I can help you with whatever you don’t understand.”

Hinata’s face lit up as he turned to Kyo. “You will? Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I don’t mind. What’s your number?”

They exchanged phones and added each other as contacts. Hinata sent a smiley face to start their thread. There was also a text from Kageyama reminding him to meet up at their spot and a good morning from Yamaguchi.

“This is great. Thank you so much, Kyo,” Hinata beamed.

“It’s nothing,” Kyo waved off sheepishly. “Can I text you tonight?”

“Yeah, whenever you want.”

There was a moment of silence that passed before Kyo spoke again. “Do you want to go to a café to eat, or do you have another class?”

“Uh, I’m sorry I can’t. I’m meeting my friend to get some food and then we have a class together.”

“Maybe I’ll see you later, then?” Kyo asked with the smile that wasn’t as creepy as Hinata thought.

“Yep,” Hinata tipped his head and watched as Kyo left.

_Hmm. He’s actually pretty cute._

Naturally, he would have those thoughts right after Kyo offered his help, but it was true. If he didn’t come off as a creepy weirdo on their first encounter, then Hinata would’ve realized how attractive he was sooner. There was an air about Kyo that was also appealing, and he was a sweet person so far.

Hinata went to the spot and waited a few minutes for Kageyama to get there. They paid for their food and sat at their previous table. Before they ate, Hinata shot Kyo a text that said that he would join him for a meal next time. Kyo responded with an animated emoji that gave him a thumbs up.

“We have practice tonight at seven,” Kageyama said. “Don’t leave without me.”

“Don’t worry I will,” Hinata replies with a full mouth.

“I’m serious.”

“I know, calm down,” Hinata raised a brow. Kageyama was an innate bully but this time something was troubling him. “Tell your best friend what the matter is.”

Kageyama frowned and began to play with his earring. This was an adorable newly formed habit that Hinata stored in his brain for future references.

“I’m, well...I don’t know if I want to play volleyball anymore.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, beautiful readers!  
> For those who may be lost, when Kyo says that he doesn't remember that night its because he was too fucked up.  
> Please let me know what you guys think about the story so far, I'm dying to know your thoughts.
> 
> -Yamaguchi


	19. Chapter 19

Anxiety settled in Hinata’s stomach the closer he, Kageyama, and Tsukishima got to the rec center. He would’ve been excited had his friends echoed the same energy, but the walk was silent. Kageyama didn’t explain to him the reason he didn’t want to play volleyball anymore and brushed Hinata off. Tsukishima was himself about it and just followed along. Hinata adjusted the strap of his workout bag as he led the way to the gym.

Quite a few guys were already there, some helping string up the net and others standing off to the side. Who Hinata recognized as the coach was speaking to the manager and they went over to greet her. The manager gave them blank pinnies to wear at every practice.

“After the net is set up, you can fall in line for warm-ups,” she said. “The locker room is that way, your assigned locker is your jersey number. We start in ten minutes.”

“Thank you.”

“Wait a minute, Kageyama-san. I need to speak with you for a moment.”

Hinata clutched his stomach as they left to get changed. “I think I’m going to be sick.”

“Try not to embarrass me,” Tsukishima began undressing. “This isn’t anything that you haven’t done before.”

Hinata sighed and opened his locker. He jumped back as packing peanuts and shredded paper spilled from inside onto the floor. The room filled with stifled laughs and Hinata saw two of his soon-to-be teammates discreetly high five each other. He moved to scoop the rest of the contents out, but Tsukishima stopped him and shared his locker.

“I understand,” Tsukishima smiled to himself and turned toward to rest of the guys. “I guess we have to establish who the hell we are.”

“I’ll stop you right there,” a guy intervened. His pinnie was the only one with a number on it and was a different color. The huge "1" on the front gave away that he was the captain. “You’re not accusing anyone of anything, are you? Did you see someone do this?”

“Are those lenses thick enough or are you still blind?” someone else cut in.

“That’s funny, I forgot that I was talking to you,” Tsukishima took a step toward the guy.

Hinata felt uneasy and pulled Tsukishima back to his side. Hinata didn’t handle confrontation too well and didn’t want them to start something that they couldn’t finish. It was just a stupid prank, no one got hurt, so he dismissed it. Kageyama came in next, not giving any attention to the mess on the floor.

Overall, the night was ass. Hinata didn’t know what was wrong with his teammates and why they weren’t coordinating with him. His mistakes were punished with flying falls and a lap around the court. The tosses set to him weren’t adjusted to his speed or height. He compensated with his blocks but, he would rather show everyone his quick up close and personal. 

They took a water break and Hinata slumped against the wall. Tsukishima and Kageyama stood next to him.

“These assholes!” Kageyama fumed. “Those serves are basically power spikes.”

“They’re doing it on purpose,” Tsukishima sipped his water. “Hinata, the one with that shitty haircut is fucking with you.”

Hinata searched for the culprit that was talking with the other mates. He shot Hinata a look over his shoulder then went back to talking. And here Hinata was questioning his skills and losing confidence in himself. They didn’t do anything wrong to these people yet, they’re treating them like an opponent. No, Hinata has more respect for his opponents to not stoop so low as to make them look like fools.

“I don’t know if Coach noticed,” Tsukishima said. “But, don’t let them see you sweat.”

No matter how mean Tsukishima could be at times, he was a real team player. That put a spring in the boys’ step and Hinata didn’t have to do any flying falls the rest of practice.

* * *

When he got back to the dorms, the first thing Hinata did was call his mom. It was soothing to hear her and his sister’s voice. He told a white lie about practice, saying that he looked forward to playing with his new teammates. She gave him more words of encouragement and wished him a good night. In his inbox, were messages from Kyo. Hinata had forgotten that Kyo would text him and typed out an apology explaining that he was at practice.

[ **1/1** ] _U play varsity? Wow, u must be rlly good!_

 _I’m ok lol_ , Hinata sent.

[ **1/1** ] _What’s ur position? How long have you been playing?_

Hinata responded and set his phone down to go take a shower. He could hear Kageyama and Tsukishima talking in the living room, still upset about practice. Kageyama said that a few of the guys cornered him before he went to class that morning. The guys said that they wouldn’t be replaced by some freshman who didn’t work half as hard as they did to get where they were. They made idle threats about blackmailing and making it hell for them, specifically Hinata.

That was why Kageyama was discouraged to play and what Coach talked to him about in the beginning of practice. She reassured him that the guys liked to play rough and nothing personal was meant by it.

“I felt that I didn’t have to deal with anything when I’m not obligated to,” Kageyama said. “If I have to ride the bench for my friend’s sake then I will.”

Hinata turned to mush at his words but Tsukishima knocked the sense back into Kageyama’s head. They wouldn’t lie over and die just because some upperclassmen were insecure about their role on the team.

In addition, the uniforms made Hinata look supreme. The shirts didn’t have collars, were sleeveless, and the shorts were slightly shorter, tighter. It made his arms look muscular and his legs went on for miles. When he finished the look with knee pads it gave him the appeal of a volleyball god, whatever that meant. 

He'd never used 'sexy' to describe himself but the more he admired himself in it, he thought that maybe it was about time to start. There was no way he'd give the volley up.

 _These are what the uniforms look like_ , Hinata texted and attached a picture of himself to send to Kyo.


	20. Chapter 20

“Don’t be afraid to be who you are!” a girl holding a megaphone shouted. On his way to class, Hinata took out one of his earbuds to better understand what she was saying. Her partner, he was holding a sign that read: _What They Don’t Know Won’t Hurt You_ and underneath was a phone number labeled anonymous. “Birds of a feather must always flock together but we do it in private!”

Hinata was unsure of what she meant but kept it in the back of his mind to ask someone later. This was his last class of three and it was back to practice. After Kyo saw his picture of him in his uniform, he gave many compliments to Hinata and promised to come to his first game. They stayed up texting one another until one in the morning even though Hinata knew he had an 8:30 am class.

Kyo was the first one from his family to attend college. He came from a single-household and was basically a co-parent to help his father raise his younger siblings. He worked two jobs while still in high school to make sure his family wouldn’t be out on the streets. Sadly, his father had a gambling addiction and often put Kyo and his brothers in dire situations with shelter and past due bills. Kyo didn’t think that he was going to advance in his education because he was afraid to leave his brothers behind. Before he could make that decision, his father agreed to get help.

If he had Kyo’s unconditional support, his father would give the same in return. Kyo got as far as Tohoku’s waitlist and he’d taken out some loans. What pushed Kyo through the door was a brilliantly written appeal essay that proved he deserved to be at the school.

Hinata sympathized with Kyo. Although he couldn’t relate to his struggle, he could understand how painful it must’ve been for him. Hearing tragic stories like his was a mind-blowing thing for Hinata because he would only see things like that in dramas. Knowing that people in the real-world endured hardships made him want to wrap his arms around them and protect them forever.

Kyo braced that he was living his best life but there was still something missing. Hinata asked if he had an idea of what that could be, and his question was deflected with a meme. Hinata planned to pry the answer out of him one day. It was a surprise that Kyo confided in him so quickly in the first place. Hinata only spilled generic things about himself because he wasn’t going to open his vault of secrets anytime soon. Though, he did leave out a certain fact because it wasn’t like it was important to their relationship.

The boys headed to practice earlier in case they needed to catch the idiotic upperclassmen in any heinous acts. Hinata’s locker was clean and the teammates didn’t seem to pay them any mind which was very suspicious. They didn’t throw any curveballs during the drills and left them to show their skills. When Hinata removed his clothes and went to shower in the stalls is when he realized the reason.

He was singing along to the music on his phone when the lights randomly shut off. He flinched because he scared easily and shrunk into the corner. When they came back on, he peeped out the curtain and it was very quiet. No one was around, and neither was his workout bag.

Tsukishima left right after practice to meet with Yamaguchi and Yachi. Kageyama was supposed to be waiting on the court for him. The setter was too spoiled to use public showers even during high school and avoided it. He said it was to prevent him from getting contaminated with "virus-feet" germs.

“Kageyama!” Hinata yelped.

He heard loud but distant snickers and a few moments later Kageyama appeared.

“Why are you yelling?” he asked.

“You didn’t see them leave with my bag?” he whined. “My clothes were in there.”

“Is that why they were running? Those assholes. Don’t worry we’ll get it back.”

Hinata groaned and threw a mini tantrum. “How am I supposed to get home?”

Kageyama sighed and set his bag on the bench. He slipped his shirt off and moved to take off his sweatpants.

“Wait, what are you doing?” Hinata stumbled over his words.

He took a step back into the stall and turned his back to the curtain. Even after all these years he still got flustered whenever Kageyama took his shirt off. He was such a groupie, it didn’t make any sense.

“I’ll wear my shorts and pinnie,” Kageyama offered his clothes.

If someone were to crack an egg on Hinata’s face he was sure that it would cook instantly. That is how hot his face was at that moment. The sweats were bigger on his waist and the shirt was also loose. Hinata had filled out since his younger years but he’d always had a smaller frame than his teammates. That’s just how he was. Like a stalker, he smelled the shirt and could’ve fainted right then and there. Kageyama’s natural odor was of lavender and tranquility.

“Are we going to tell coach?” Hinata asked. He put on his slides that those bastards were sensible enough to leave.

“We can’t be snitches. We can handle them our own way.”

Hinata nodded and they walked back to the dorm. All the while, his creative brain made scenarios in his head that appealed to his absent primitive side. Wearing Kageyama’s clothes was great but, he needed hands-on experience to know for sure how he smelled. He knew that he should stop torturing himself but couldn’t he at least have his creative and interactive mind?

He was doing his part by being a good noodle and not thinking about that day. As well as, slowly falling back into the crevices of the friend zone that he never left. But, the wicked voice in his head often assured him that things would’ve been much simpler had it been him who was on the receiving end of those hips.


	21. Chapter 21

While Hinata was supposed to be paying attention to the movie Tsukishima put on, he was playing on his phone instead. The device went _ping_ in his hands and he couldn’t stop the wide smile that spread across his face. The notification tone was specifically assigned for when Kyo sent him messages. He sat up on the couch and brought the phone closer so that Tsukishima wouldn’t peep. Kyo sent a reaction meme regarding Hinata’s last comment and Hinata sent back a laughing kaomoji.

“Who has you smiling at your phone so hard?” Kageyama asked.

He took a seat in front of them with a bowl of chips meant for all but was all for one. Hinata had just spent his money buying personal snacks and Kageyama was determined to consume them all before Hinata could.

“Nunya,” Hinata replied and his phone gave another _ping_.

[1/1] _R u busy 2nite?_

Hinata read the text and looked at his friends. Tonight was supposed to be a movie night of sorts with the other two but Hinata was bored. He didn’t get to pick out the movie and he could only watch and re-watch so many sci-fi films thanks to Tsukishima. It would be better if Kyo came over to hang out. He could make it up to the two another time if they felt as if Kyo imposed. 

Hinata sent the invite to Kyo and rushed to his room to make sure it was decent enough for company to come over. He came back out and stood by the couch.

“Would you guys be mad if I invite a friend over?”

Kageyama made a face. “Isn’t this our movie night? Do we even know who this person is?”

Hinata thought Kageyama to be very annoying at times. He was very particular about the way things were planned and would get upset if it didn’t go according to it.

Tsukishima shrugged his shoulder. “It doesn’t matter. Just know I’m going to give him a hard time.”

Yamaguchi was the nice one out of them all, really. Hinata never had a problem bringing anyone around him. It was Kageyama and Tsukishima who couldn’t keep their mouths shut for one moment and often scared Hinata’s new friends away. Regardless of the answer, Hinata was going to bring Kyo in anyways. He was only asking to be polite.

His phone went off once more.

“Could you put your phone on silent,” Kageyama threw a chip at him, “Some of us want to actually watch the movie.”

[ **1/2** ] _Maybe next time. I was hoping u could meet me in the courtyard._

_When?_ Hinata sent.

[ **1/1** ] _Is right now ok?_

Without hesitation, Hinata pocketed his phone and grabbed his dorm key from the kitchen counter. He threw a ‘later’ over his shoulder as he put on his shoes. Before Kageyama could start complaining, he shut the door and made way downstairs. He would have to thank Kyo later for getting him out of there.

Kyo was dressed in all black including the color of his beanie and tennis shoes. It looked like he was ready to rob a bank or join a cult. Kyo refused to tell Hinata about where they were going or what they were doing. He told him to wait until they got there and then he would ask Hinata’s opinion on the situation. They took a route that was away from campus and closer to the more closed off areas along the outskirts of campus. It was becoming creepier by the second because it was getting darker and barely anyone was around.  

His newfound friend could be trying to murder him, as Kageyama would put it. Hinata wasn’t as irresponsible as he and many others may think. He took note of the landmarks they passed and the name of the last building. Hinata texted Yamaguchi the description of it and the direction they took from the building. At least if Kyo did kill him, the guys would know where to find his body.

The two eventually came to a stop and they stood there without speaking. Hinata was confused because the only thing in front of them was obviously an abandoned shed. Inside there was a flicker of lights but they shut off as they inched closer to it.

“Oh shit! You’re actually trying to kill me?” Hinata cried. “I thought we were cool.”

Kyo let out a nervous chuckled and held his hands out. “I’m not. I don’t have anything to kill you with.”

Hinata took a step back. “Then why are we here?”

“I can’t tell you just yet. We have to—”

The door to the shed opened and a girl stepped out. Hinata found her face familiar but he couldn’t remember where he saw it. She embraced Kyo with a smile and tipped her head at Hinata. She was also wearing everything in black and now, Hinata was sure that Kyo led him to the cult’s lair.

“You must Hinata Shōyō?” the girl said. “I know this looks like we’re trying to kidnap you, but I promise it’s the safest place on campus.”

“We should get inside if you want more convincing,” Kyo urged.

Reluctantly, Hinata followed the two inside. The shed was well tended to on the inside as opposed to how it looked on the outside. The wooden walls were painted and decorated with artistic designs. There was a side table with a vase on top stood next to a cushioned sitting bench. Hinata was even more confused but he kept his questions to himself and went along with the flow.

The shed was more of a vestibule, Hinata realized. It had a back-door exit which was more so an entrance to the structure connected to it. The structure’s design was similar to a banquet hall but much smaller and didn’t have a stage. There were tables and chairs set up restaurant-style and two long tables topped with food was on each side of the door. The hall clearly had personal touches of many different styles because it didn’t have just one overall theme.

It was a good number of students there, none there that Hinata knew. And just like Kyo and the girl, they were all dressed in black.

What did he get himself into now?


	22. Chapter 22

“My name is Hinata and I’m a first year,” Hinata said as he continued to introduce himself. As part of it, he had to say where he was from, his major, what he liked to do and who brought him. A few people were impressed that he was on the varsity team even though he was a first-year. “Thank you to all of our new members for coming on this wonderful night.” The girl who already knew Hinata’s name spoke in a loud but calm voice. Everyone snapped as an applause to the newcomers. “I’m Satsuki, the president of this club called, The Haven. What we aim to do is gather _our_ people here in a loving and accepting environment without judgment from others.”

Hinata was trying to figure out why she looked familiar when it hit him. She and was ones of the people holding up the sign and speaking through the megaphone earlier that day. He assumed that her message was meant for the people who came to this club. The intensity in her voice then made it as though it was a serious matter. Her sign implied that something was out there to hurt the people who surrounded him. Hinata was getting a bad feeling about being there all over again.

Kyo nudged Hinata’s leg under the table and nodded his head towards Satsuki.

“We have a few rules here that are quite simple to follow. It’s imperative that you take heed of them carefully. If you feel as though you cannot, the entrance is also the exit.”

The Haven was built around secrecy. The location, who showed their face and the attire. The meeting time was always at night and once a week inside this “abandoned” building. Whoever came were to only come dressed in black to better camouflage with the darkness. Everyone present were members of the club and at the same time not.  For all the rest of school knew, they weren’t even meeting there at all. It coined its name from being exactly that, a haven. A safe place for those students to feel comfortable and be themselves without the threat of others.

Yet, Hinata was confused because he didn’t know what they were trying to hide.

There weren’t allowed to speak about the club outside of the club. If they needed to communicate with the members for an upcoming event they used a group chat for that. Everyone who got access to the group chat only had access to it the day of the meetings and events. The club was going to be kept as discreet as possible.

Satsuki went into more detail about future plans and generic club duties. She finished her announcements with a smile and let the people talk amongst themselves.

Kyo got them snacks from the food table to munch on before it was all gone. “Did you catch all of that?”

“I’m not sure,” Hinata said. He must’ve made an unpleasant face as he spoke because Kyo’s mood seemed to change.

He turned his body to Hinata and took a deep breath. “I know we haven’t known each other for that long but I feel like I can share important things with you.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

“With that being said, I want you to know that I’m gay. All of the people here are under that umbrella.”

Hinata’s mind went to an old episode of SpongeBob SquarePants. The scene where Patrick wore an ice cream come on his head and screamed “wee-woo” into his walkie-talkie. He noticed how Kyo didn’t exclude him from that category of all the people there. Kyo also answered his question on what they were trying to hide.

Hinata never had someone come out to him. Hell, he hadn’t even come to terms with who he was. He felt a pang of envy because there was no way in a million years that he was going to say anything like that to his friends. Why did Kyo feel so willing to share his secret? What was Hinata supposed to do with a burden like that? He must’ve made another unpleasant face because Kyo began to get fidgety.  

“You have to understand that anything that is said here must stay here,” Kyo stammered. “Can I trust you to keep my secret yours?”

Hinata was feeling bitter now but he wasn’t the type of person to out someone. He wished that Kyo had never brought him there in the first place. His old coach often told him to fake it until he made it, so he turned his confused frown upside down.

Since Kyo met Hinata at his dorm, Hinata walked Kyo straight to his dorm building after the meeting. The first few minutes were silent and awkward. That was their first time together when one of them didn’t have anything to say to the other. Hinata was short with his answers and Kyo couldn’t get a sentence out without stumbling over his words. When they got to the dorm Hinata pulled Kyo over to the side where he was sure that no one could hear what he was about to say.

“Do you really like guys?” Hinata asked. It was embarrassing for him to say it out loud.

Kyo took a step back. “Yeah, I wouldn’t lie about that.”

He didn’t know why he needed to hear that again. He took his own step back after realizing how he’d cornered his friend and apologized.

“Why didn’t you tell me before?”

“I wasn’t obligated to tell you anything,” Kyo shrugged. “It was my choice to share.”

Hinata looked at the ground. His envious feelings were back, and he didn’t like how they made him feel at all. He wanted to that feel power, to have that same confidence in himself.

“How?” Hinata’s voice was barely above a whisper.

“I can’t give you the ‘how’, Hinata. But, I can give you the ‘why’.”

Hinata made eye contact with Kyo. There was something about that gleam in his eyes that consoled Hinata. It was akin to genuine understanding and acceptance whether Kyo knew if Hinata was under that umbrella or not. He hoped that one day it would be his choice to share too, without being embarrassed to say it out loud.

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: All things Haikyuu goes to the one and only Haruichi Furudate.


End file.
